Why bother with predators when you can cyber with peers?

A Dutch study, while "flawed," finds that some teenagers pretend to have sex while sending each other explicit messages and images. But the majority of teens report "flirting," not cybersex.

It all depends on how you define it, I guess.

What's nice about the article is the measured response from the adults, advising parents to adjust to the modern world and talk about the internet and sex with their youth – without panic. To me, that means without condemnation or visible fear.

"Parents talk only about the danger and risks of the Internet; they are very focused on how to protect their children from online predators," she said "These data suggest they should be thinking about something else: that the kids are all 'doing it' online already."

She said that parents should not panic, but start adjusting to the new reality.

"Parents need to teach their kids about sex and the Internet the same way they do about the dangers of alcohol or drugs, and they can't postpone it," she said. "From the very first time children use the Internet, they're going to be confronted with sex."

Youth have been 'doing it' for realsies and for pretend for generations. I can see positives and negatives to doing it through technology.

Regardless of what a parent might see as positive or negative aboutthis type of teen sexual exploration, though, the tech is here to stay and it's only going to escalate. It's time for all of us – not just parents – to admit it and deal with it, don't you think?