Is your child safe online?

The Internet is an extremely useful tool.

Children and young people spend a lot of time online, where they socialise, explore and research.

Social networking sites and chat rooms have mushroomed in recent years and children can also sent instant messages.

And through the years the safety of children in the online world has been greatly compromised.

Among some of the dangers that children and young people are exposed to are sexting, cyberbullying and exposure to sexual predators.

Sexting is sending or receiving nude or partially nude photos or videos through the internet or cell phones.

Cyberbullying includes sending hateful messages or even death threats to children.

It also includes spreading lies about them online and making unpleasant comments on their social networking profiles.

Websites are also being created to attack some children and young people’s physical appearances or reputation.

After realising that local children and young people are exposed to risks associated with the online world, the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (Potraz) has developed draft guidelines for child online protection.

According to Potraz, the measures are expected to protect children from harm online.

The regulatory body cited cyber bullying and pornography among the many risks that are associated with the online world.

In coming up with the guidelines, Potraz is doing this in line with the desire to embrace international best practices.

According to Potraz, the guidelines were domesticated and adapted to the Zimbabwean environment from those developed by the International Telecommunication Union.

This was also done in collaboration with a team of contributing authors from leading institutions which are active in the ICT sector and in child online safety.

Potraz further states that the guidelines were prepared within the context of the Child Online Protection (COP) Initiative in order to establish the foundations for a safe and secure cyber-world for present and future generations.

COP is a special UN led multi-stakeholder effort to promote awareness on the importance of child safety in the online world.

It also seeks to develop practical tools to assist governments, industry and educators in this domain.

Stakeholders that are involved in the protection of the interests of children are being invited to review the proposed guidelines and provide feedback to Potraz.

Once adopted, these guidelines will be used to produce age-specific literature that will target the different age groups identified in the guidelines.

The guidelines will be an important online resource that will educate both the parents and children about Internet safety.

Stakeholders that are involved in the protection of the interests of children welcomed the proposed guidelines saying that they were long overdue.

Mr Caleb Mutandwa, director of Justice for Children Trust, said there was need for the guidelines to be marketed and implemented.

“This is an idea which should have been implemented a long time ago. Potraz should work with other stakeholders such as the ministries of Primary and Secondary Education and the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare so as to popularise the guidelines,” Mr Mutandwa said.

Mr Mutandwa said JCT had over the past conducted research on child online safety for Save the Children Foundation and noted similarities with some of the points noted in the Potraz guidelines.

“The Potraz proposals must be customised to suit locals. I noticed that some of the points that were raised in the proposals have nothing to do with locals. There is need for Potraz to consult both the children and users of the internet before coming up with the guidelines,” Mr Mutandwa said.

Mr Mutandwa called upon those companies that offer Internet services to provide the resources that will make it possible for the proposals to be marketed.

“Internet service providers have a duty to raise awareness. As part of their social responsibilities, the companies avail resources that will go towards awareness campaigns,” added Mr Mutandwa.

Some of the stakeholders pointed out that there is need for new legislation that deals primarily with child online safety.

“What would happen if one is found exposing children to pornography for example? There is need for legal reforms that will support the guidelines. Without a legal standing, the guidelines will be nothing but heaps of papers,” said Mr Tonderai Makoni, an ICT expert.

Mr Makoni said some of the proposed guidelines were vague.

“The proposals must be clearly spelt and target children in different age groups. After going through the proposals I concluded that they must clearly address issues that affect children from different age groups,” added Mr Makoni.

Efforts to get a comment from Potraz on how the stakeholders have so far responded to the review process were fruitless. The telecommunications regulatory body had not responded to questions sent by The Sunday Mail by the time of going to print.

Ms Kumbi Mahiya, director of the Girl and Women Empowerment Network, said: “I appreciate what Potraz has done. There is need for Potraz to embark on a serious marketing drive so that the targeted group- the children- are aware of the guidelines. There is need for schools to fully encompass the guidelines so that the proposals are known by the children.”

Ms Mahiya is on record arguing that society is not doing enough to protect children.

“Some of the activities such as the selling of wares by children at Mbare Musika exposes them to people with sinister motives.

“Families are failing to properly guide their children so that they are better prepared to face dangers. Parents must make efforts to monitor what their children watch on the Internet,” Ms Mahiya said.

Zimbabwe is not alone in these efforts to create a safe online platform.

Mr Parry Aftab, an international cyberspace security expert and executive director of WiredSafety.org, one of the largest Internet safety education groups in the world, recently wrote about the dangers related to cyberbullying.

“Some cyberbullies pose as their victims and send out harassing messages to others. Recently, cyberbullies have also begun posting humiliating videos of other kids they dislike.”

In 2015, Nicky Morgan, Britain’s education secretary, unveiled measures similar to those Portraz is introducing.

Online sources indicates that sexual predators often uses flattery and sympathy to lure children.

The predators also invest time in their online relationship, often resulting in offline relationships which might end up in kidnapping or abductions.