The efforts of the Thiruvananthapuram City police to ensure safety for children on the Internet is all set to take one step forward with the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) deciding to include details of cybercrime related to children in the school curriculum.
While the academic year starting this year will have a note on cyber awareness printed on the back inner covers of textbooks for Standards IX and X, one entire chapter will be devoted to the topic from the next academic year.
The campaign for online safety for children was launched by the City police last year through a booklet compiled by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) K. Sanjay Kumar Gurudin.
A video is being made incorporating highlights of the issue and ways to tackle online abuse.
Pamphlet
The campaign got valuable support from other quarters in November when the Kerala State Council for Child Welfare joined hands with the City police to come out with a pamphlet on the topic. The pamphlet was aimed at creating awareness and to encourage women and children to speak out and seek help from the police whenever they face harassment on the Internet.
The note that is being printed by the SCERT for its textbooks has information on how social networking sites can be misused by predators and how adult cyber criminals lurk online to trap children. Tips for safe social networking are also given. These range from asking children to keep their personal information to themselves, not to trust online friends, using strong passwords and never to share pictures or email account details etc.
Dos and don’ts
The note also tells children what to do if they were being harassed. They are cautioned to ‘always remember’ to never meet alone or in private a person whom they became friends online.
Helpline numbers of the police are also being printed on the note.
