Ensuring cyber safety crucial

While the Internet has become an indispensable part of our lives as a communications medium, an online survey carried out by UNICEF has unearthed some disturbing news. We now know that about 13 percent of teens face harassment on social media and this is happening largely because people getting online are not particularly aware of the pitfalls of using the Internet and social media. Indeed, some 3.3 percent of social media users have closed down their accounts to avoid harassment altogether, but does that really solve the problem? From what we know about the Facebook revelations and the massive information leak of millions of users to third parties, our users, particularly children, are at a greater risk than ever before!

Some 11,821 children between the ages of 13 and 18 who took part in the survey called for stronger safety. That safety will come from raising awareness among not only children but also parents, teachers and Facebook. It is not just online bullying. We have faced the horror of terrorist attacks perpetrated by young adults barely out of their teens, and they were radicalised through the Internet. Hence, it is high time we educated children and their guardians to keep themselves out of harm's way.

We feel that UNICEF's year-long programme that aims to reach 25 million teenagers, their parents and teachers to create awareness of cyber safetyis a step in the right direction,but any measure adopted shouldn't infringe on fundamental freedoms as we saw in the case of the draft Digital Security Act, some of whose provisions we oppose.