Recently, Cyber Crime Police arrested a Margao resident for allegedly creating a fake Instagram ID of his former girlfriend and posting nude and objectionable photographs. The accused was booked under section 67 B of IT Act and Section 8 of Goa Children’s Act. The Cyber Crime Police were able to trace the creator of the ID and later traced the person at Margao.
The Cyber Police also identified 9 Instagram IDs of minor girls from elite city school in the capital city of Panjim who posted morphed video tarnishing images of other minor girls for personal revenge.
With smartphones being almost in the hands of everybody, including minors, their vulnerability to cybercrime attacks has increased. Today, everybody is connected to the internet. But the web world has benefits as well as drawbacks. One needs to be cautious.
As many as 1,823 cases of cybercrimes against children were recorded in 2022 – a 32 per cent rise from the previous year, the NCRB data showed. In 2021, the total number of such cases was 1,376.
The offences include cyber pornography, hosting or publishing obscene sexual materials depicting children, cyber stalking or bullying and other allied crimes.
As many as 1,171 cases of ‘Cyber Pornography / Hosting or Publishing Obscene Sexual Materials’, 158 cases of cyber stalking / bullying and 416 cases of cybercrimes against children of other nature were reported.
The vulnerability to cyber-attacks has increased after the COVID-19 pandemic, when children across the world were forced to attend classes online. The fear that the COVID pandemic may have left children far more exposed to various online education and other entertainment platforms – which in effect tended to increase risks for children manifested at multiple levels – has been vindicated by the current NCRB data.
Most of the children are now with mobile phones. Parents need to track what their kids are doing, and which websites they are surfing. If there is no control on them then untoward incidents take place. Youngsters share their information when the relationship is going well. But when the relationship turns sour, the same information is misused.
Minor girls share their photos with their boyfriends when they are in a relationship. But when there is a break-up, the boyfriends or even other girls, in order to take revenge, morph the photos and share them on social media.
It is time for parents and schools to educate our children about the dangers of the internet. We need to set rules for internet use, use parental controls, encourage open communication, monitor our children’s social media, teach them how to protect their personal information, and take action if the child is a victim of cybercrime.
Parental supervision is paramount to a child’s protection and safety. Children cannot be criticised for making wrong choices if they are not old enough for it.
The responsibility for a young child’s safety rests directly on the guardian. Parents and guardians need to do their due diligence and check out adults who have access to their children, and children are never too old for a parent’s or trusted adult’s supervision.
The more involvement a parent takes in his or her child’s life, the less likely it is that the child will seek that attention from a less savoury and possibly dangerous source. There are no quick fixes or gimmicks that take the place of adult supervision and concern. It’s up to all of us to ensure our children’s safety and protection.
There are some very important things that children must keep in mind when they are on the computer at home or at school, library, friend’s home, etc.
Be careful about posting pictures of yourself, remember never to give out personal information such as your name, home address, school name, or telephone number in a chat room or on bulletin boards. Also, never send a picture of yourself to someone you chat with on the computer without your parent’s permission.
Never write to someone who has made you feel uncomfortable or scared. Remember that people online may not be who they say they are. There’s no such thing as “private” on the Internet. You may think so, but it’s not true. People can find anything they want – and keep what you post – forever.
We have seen recently, how celebrities have been targeted using Artificial Intelligence. With the advancement in technology, the vulnerability is also increasing. We have to safeguard ourselves against cyber assault. A moment of weakness can prove disastrous as the videos and pictures tend to go viral and the magnitude of the damage is too widespread to contain.
Prevention is better than cure, it is said. In this case, there is no cure. Prevention is the only way. We need to acknowledge this fact and get our act together.
