RICHMOND (AP) -- Harsher sentences for online sexual predators and a campaign to educate parents and children about cyberspace dangers are two of the top recommendations of Attorney General Bob McDonnell's Internet Safety Task Force.

The 41-member panel issued its final report Wednesday after six months of study.

"The Internet represents a new frontier of the last 10 years or so for criminals," McDonnell said at a news conference. "The big challenge is how do we take those good old warnings we heard as kids into the cyber age."

One answer to that, he said, is public awareness. The task force proposed a statewide advertising blitz about the threat of online predators and measures that can be taken to protect children. America Online, which has its headquarters in northern Virginia, donated $100,000 to jump-start the campaign.

The panel also recommended improving Internet safety education in public schools and creating public awareness programs through private employers, religious groups, health and welfare organizations and state agencies.

"Everywhere parents and kids gather, we want to have this information available," said McDonnell, who identified the education effort as the panel's top recommendation.

The task force also proposed establishing minimum, mandatory sentences for producing child pornography and online solicitation of children. Halifax County Commonwealth's Attorney Kim Slayton-White, a member of the task force, said many crimes that now carry a maximum 10-year sentence would be upgraded to mandatory minimums of five to 30 years.

Among the other recommendations:

-- Amend the law against online solicitation of children to protect children 17 and younger. The current law covers children younger than 15.

-- Allow authorities to seize computers and other equipment used by anyone convicted of online solicitation or possession of child pornography. The law already allows confiscation of equipment used by those who produce or distribute child porn.

-- Streamline procedures for investigators to obtain subscriber information from Internet service providers.

-- Allow "controlled deliveries" of child porn from police to suspected collectors of such material.

-- Eliminate an exception in the child pornography law for material used for legitimate artistic, medical, scientific, education, religious, governmental or judicial purposes.

-- Establish a regional computer forensic science lab to train police on how to investigate online crimes.

The task force previously had announced a proposal requiring convicted sex offenders to register their e-mail addresses and other online identities with the state sex offender registry. That would allow online social networking sites like MySpace.com to block messages from those offenders.

The proposals that require legislation will be considered in the General Assembly session that begins Jan. 10.