Madrid (EFE).- Indispensable and useful, the Internet has become an irreplaceable tool in all spheres, but also an addictive and dangerous technology from which one can incur, with gestures that are sometimes almost unconscious (such as clicking to forward a image) in actions that entail work, educational and even criminal responsibilities.
Before the celebration of Safe Internet Day (SID, for its acronym in English), two experts in protection and security -Mar España, director of the Spanish Agency for Data Protection; and Manuel Ransán, from the National Institute of Cybersecurity) analyze some of the main risks and dangers of the network and also some of the recommendations that must be addressed to make responsible use of technologies, especially the youngest.
Safe Internet Day, which is repeated on the second day of the second week of the second month of the year, has been promoted by the international organization “Insafe-Inhope” and around this date there are institutional acts and calls to make a sensible and judicious use of the network.
The event celebrates its twentieth anniversary this year and the National Cybersecurity Institute (INCIBE), which launched the Internet Segura For Kids (IS4K) platform to promote the safety of minors, has scheduled numerous events and activities that focus on equip children and young people with skills that help them to be critical, respectful and creative when using these technologies.
“LeDasUnMovilYYA” is the name of the campaign launched by the Spanish Agency for Data Protection (AEPD) and Unicef to alert families and educators about the importance of the moment in which a mobile phone is given to a child, that they may not be aware of all the risks associated with the device: sending or receiving compromised photos, cyberbullying, contact with adults posing as children, or stopping other activities because they are online.
The guide that does not come with the mobile
The campaign includes “The guide that does not come with the mobile” in which the ten keys that must be taken into account when giving a mobile to a minor have been compiled, including setting rules and limits; extreme data care in social networks; monitor their video games (because many include violence, sex, and offensive language); know who they play or talk to; stimulate their critical sense; and guarantee disconnection spaces so that they can concentrate on studies, rest or other activities and thus avoid addictive and problematic use of screens.
“Sometimes not even adults know how to deal with certain situations that arise on the internet,” observed the director of the AEPD, Mar España, and referred to the claims they receive through the “Priority Channel” to request the withdrawal urgent sexual or violent content published without permission, mostly by women and even girls who face the publication of their data “to denigrate or intimidate them”.
In statements to EFE, Mar España has assured that these risks have “as many or more” consequences than if they occurred in the real world, since information is transmitted at full speed on the Internet, replicated and reproduced in a matter of minutes, which can become “a heavy burden if it is used to harm someone and humiliation or comments are disseminated with videos or photographs of sexual or violent content in which minors appear.”
And although all devices are equally dangerous, the mobile phone has become “an extension of ourselves” and many young people -Mar España has pointed out- is the first thing they see when they get up and the last thing they look at when they go to bed, and it has had an impact therefore in the importance of planning the delivery of a telephone to a minor and of setting clear rules and limits.
The person in charge of the AEPD has also warned that harassing other people, intimidating them, discriminating against them, expressing mockery or publishing sensitive content on the internet can constitute an administrative infraction and even a crime and lead to criminal, administrative, civil, labor or educational responsibility.
The importance of disconnection
Mar España has insisted on the importance of disconnection to carry out other activities and avoid “addictive and problematic” use of screens, and on being vigilant to early detect situations that may affect the physical or mental health of the minors.
Along the same lines, Manuel Ransán, head of Cybersecurity for Citizens and Minors at INCIBE, has observed that minors are especially vulnerable and need the care, education and protection of third parties and that this is aggravated in the digital environment, where many The products and services they access do not have an adequate design for their level of maturity.
In statements to EFE, Ransán has observed that mobile devices allow a degree of autonomy that makes supervision difficult, and that their continuous availability also makes it more complex to manage certain situations, such as acting impulsively at the request of a practice of risk (such as “sexting” or sending images of sexual content) or in the face of an online conflict, where reacting hotly “could escalate the incident”.
And among the main consequences of the inappropriate use of these devices, the person in charge of INCIBE has cited access to inappropriate content, contact with strangers or inappropriate management of privacy and digital identity.
Many organizations and companies have joined the celebration of Safe Internet Day today and have shared the main recommendations for children to make proper use of the network, guidelines that always start from education and training, so that they have the skills necessary to manage in a balanced and healthy way in that environment.