Call for Maltese children to be smart (and safe) online

Today’s children are often nicknamed the “digital natives”, born in a world where technology is pervasive and touches almost every aspect of their lives. According to a recent study commissioned by the Malta Communications Authority 97 per cent of Maltese minors between the ages of seven to 15 have an internet connection at home. While 78 per cent use the internet for academic purposes, 70 per cent use it for gaming and 66 per cent for social networking.

While these statistics do confirm the assimilation of technology by our children, it also highlights the need to protect our children as they partake in a digital age which has also taken over adults.

With a view to increasing awareness on the safe use of the internet by minors, various Maltese stakeholders have joined forces to engage on a 20-month project called BeSmartOnline! The project is coordinated by the MCA and includes Agenzija Appoġġ, the Commissioner for Children, the Directorate for Educational Services, the Secretariat for Catholic Education and the Malta Police Force.

Attempts to protect children online include the use of technical filters, which are not 100 per cent secure and need to be constantly updated. This was highlighted in a recent report published by the European Commission, which confirmed the problems of effectively using internet filters.

The biggest challenge though seems to be social, not technical.

“A bigger and more worrying challenge is minimising the digital divide that exists between children and their carers, be it parents, grandparents and in some cases even educators,” a spokesman for the MCA told i-Tech.

“This age-related digital divide means that carers are not always in the best position to advise children on the best practices to undertake while using the internet. It is important that we make parents and other carers aware of what online tools children are using and how, and more so, what measures can be taken to ensure the children’s online safety.”

However the MCA insists that internet is not especially dangerous but since persons of all kind make use of it, the safety measures taken in the real world should also apply here.

“One must remain mindful however that it is not the internet as such that is the problem or the threat in this case. Just as a parent would safeguard their children in the physical world, the same safeguards need to be applied in the virtual world, such as not to talk to strangers! It is important for parents to learn the best online practices themselves and to teach these to their children, get involved in their children’s’ online activity, to know what they are doing and to keep their computers in a common room where they can be monitored among others.”

The survey commissioned by the MCA confirmed that parents are mostly unaware of the potential risks. A third of minors have a computer in the bedroom with minimal opportunity for effective supervision. Moreover, many children under the age of 13 report that they use social networks such as Facebook and MSN despite these sites not accepting subscription of individuals under this age.

When thinking of online safety for children we must limit ourselves to computers as the usage of wireless devices, such as the smartphones and tablets, is increasing at an astonishing rate. The authority acknowledges this is a further challenge that needs to be addressed.

“The best safeguard at this present time would be awareness, knowledge sharing on best practices and support mechanisms that are offered to the children. It is important that children are educated on best practices and the possible harms that they may encounter over such devices and that there is help available for them. Of course, all this is in addition to any filtering software that might be available for the device in question.”

Information society service providers in Malta are required by law to inform the competent authority of any alleged illegal activity or information. They are also requested to provide to such authority any information enabling the identification of the persons undertaking the activity or providing the information. This is done within the confinements of the data retention law.

The MCA is informed that, in practice, internet service providers collaborate with the police to remove and/or block any illegal, harmful content. The public Wi-Fi access points provided by MCA are filtered by the ISPs providing the service.

All these issues will be tackled in the coming months as part of the BeSmartOnline! project, which, is co-financed by the Safer internet Programme of the European Commission and the centre will form part of Insafe, the European network of Awareness Centres.

A helpline (for the public to phone and clarify queries etc.) and a hotline (for reporting purposes) is also being set up and administered by Agenzija Appoġġ. A youth panel has been set up and an advisory board shall be carrying out a ‘Train the trainers’ programme which will lead to a comprehensive campaign in schools.

An education campaign   through media and a series of events will be targeting minors, parents and educators. A National Advisory Board has already been set up and will be facilitating discussion with all local stakeholders including NGOs, governmental agencies and private organisations.