Having discussed the general definition and history of C.O.P in there earlier blog. We continue with the various topics so as to understand what exactly why children/youth need to be protected online.

COP GUIDELINES AS PROVIDED BY ITU

 For children:

The guidelines advise them on possible harmful activities online, such as bullying and harassment, identity theft, and online abuse. They also include advice to children seeing and experiencing harmful and illegal content online, or young people being exposed to grooming for sexual purposes, the production, distribution and collection of child abuse material.

For parents and educators:

the guidelines provide recommendations on what they can do to make their child’s online experience a positive one.

For industry:

provides guidance on protecting children’s rights online for those companies that develop, provide or make use of information and communication technologies (ICT). The Guidelines have been developed to align with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and explain not only what companies can do to protect children’s safety online, but also how they can enable the positive use of ICTs by children. The Guidelines also include sector-specific checklists that recommend actions for mobile operators; Internet service providers; national and public service broadcasters; content providers, online retailers and applications developers; user-generated content; and hardware manufacturers.

For policy makers:

the guidelines will help individual countries plan for their strategies for child online protection in the short, medium and longer term. In order to formulate a national strategy focusing on online child safety, policy makers need to consider a range of strategies, including establishing a legal framework; developing law enforcement capabilities; putting in place appropriate resources and reporting mechanisms; and providing education and awareness resources.

WHAT CHILDREN DO ONLINE AND SOCIAL NETWORKING

Children and young people go online to connect with friends, and make new ones, to browse the internet for information, chat with others and play games. They may:

• search for information or content on search engines like Google and Bing
• share images and watch videos through websites or mobile apps like Instagram, Pinterest, Vine and YouTube
• use social networking websites like Facebook and Twitter
• write or reply to messages on forums and message boards
• play games alone or with others through websites, apps or game consoles
• chat with other people through online games, BBM (Blackberry Messenger), game consoles, webcams, social networks and tools like WhatsApp

When online, children and young people can learn new things, get help with homework, express themselves creatively and connect with friends and family.

ONLINE RISKS

Evidence is growing that the internet is becoming part of the offline risks and negative experiences that may harm children. Risks associated with the Internet and ICT devices include:

• Contact or conduct risks: Cyberbullying
• exposure to pornography
• violent (User Generated Content)
• sexual exploitation, child abuse images or child pornography
• Sexting
• other potentially harmful experiences
• Cyberstalking

To be continued…Next week will expound more on the  Online Risks