Children's perspectives on a 'safe internet'

As their elders organise multiple conferences and seminars aimed at creating a safe internet for children, what are the perspectives of the children who are directly affected?

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 31 March 2018, 08:23 AM
Updated : 31 March 2018, 08:59 AM

The UN children’s agency UNICEF attempted to answer the question in a new study which was part of the organisation’s ‘online safety’ campaign with Facebook.  

Thousands of children and guardians attended the day-long ‘Safe Internet for Children and Youths’ programme on Friday at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Novo Theater in Dhaka.

AM Sakil Faizullah, communication manger of UNICEF Bangladesh, said the study showed that one in every five internet users in Bangladesh was under 18 years of age.

The UNICEF study was conducted on Facebook. The questionnaire reached 900,000 children and youth and was answered by 11,821 participants between 13 to 18 years of age.

>> Around 81.2 percent of the participants said they use social media every day

>> 90 percent of participants said they use mobile internet while 6.6 participants use laptop or desktop for social media

>> 5.1 percent of respondents confessed that they have posted personal information and pictures of others on social media without their consent, 3.3 percent of children did not believe it was important to take permission before posting such things and 13 percent said they faced harassment on the social media

>> 13.6 percent of respondents say they do not think that sharing small amounts personal information or pictures with an unknown person is harmful, while 52 percent said they have no objection if they strangers send them friend requests

>> 62.6 percent said they would not agree to share pictures or other personal information even if they speak to strangers on social media, while 3 percent of them admitted to running fake accounts under a false identity

>> However, 84.8 percent of respondents said it was important to create a ‘safe internet’ to avoid undesirable and harmful interactions online

The UNICEF event featured several a drawing contest, a robotics show, a puppet show and other cultural programmes to raise awareness of a ‘safe internet’, help guide more effective policymaking and more responsible business practices for children.

State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak, Bangladesh telecommunication and regulatory commission official Dr Shamsuzzoha, UNICEF Representative Edouard Beigbedar, Facebook’s policy maker Shruti Moghe, Ten Minutes School founder Ayman Sadiq, cricketer Shakib Al Hasan, actress Nusrat Imroz Tisha and singer Razwana Chowdhury Bannya  spoke during the discussion session.

Students said their vague ideas regarding the internet had been cleared up by the event.

Sifat Jahan and Amena Akhter, 10th grade students of Halim Foundation Model High School, told bdnews24.com that they spent at least 5 or 6 hours on online sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube.

“Today I understood that this internet use has harmed my studies,” said Sifat. “I will limit my time online from now on.

Lucky Akhter Pinky, a 10th grade student of Koratitola CMS Memorial High School and College, said that she has been using the internet for a few months, mostly to listen to new songs or watch new movies on YouTube.

“By attending this event I have learned about safe internet use”, she said.

Shahriar Samin, a 9th grade student of Mohammadpur Govt High School told that he learned about some apps to avoid harmful websites one.

Housewife Nigar Sultana came to the event with her school-going daughters and told bdnews24.com that she is happy her children’s time online is regulated.

“We have a schedule to regulate time use and we are careful to ensure they are not exposed to anything they should not be,” she said. 

Businessman Swapan Kumar Gain also brought his daughter in the event. He said he was happy to learn more about the internet and said his children would enjoy internet access when be required for their studies in the future.

Masuma Khatun, who came with her two children said, “Kids are too advanced now. I am always worried about allowing them to use the internet.”

Several internet providers presented their different initiatives for cyber security and a safe internet at the event.

“Harmful and unwanted websites are possible to control using a device like a router. We are filtering a safe internet site for our clients,” said Hasibul Islam, pre-sales engineer of Bangla.net.

Several educational online websites providing content specifically for children, such as Ten Minutes School, Jago Foundation online school, Eyeschool Education, reflective TEENS, Cyber Crime Awareness Foundation, Dev Skill also attended the event.

Children take part in activities to promote safe internet at an event organised by the UNICEF and Facebook at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Novo Theatre in Dhaka on Friday. Photo: asif mahmud ove

UNICEF and Facebook gave several suggestions to ensure a safe and secure internet for children. These are: 

# Make high quality online materials available for children.

# Protect them from misuse, abuse, trafficking, cyber bullying and inappropriate subjects online

# Preserve a child’s privacy and online identity

# Provide digital education to children to help them understand the internet and remain secure in internet use

# Use the private sector to develop moral values and practice among children

# Keep children at the centre of digital policy