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| The writer believes that a beautiful camaraderie makes life a wonderful journey. |
I read the letter “Stranger danger” in the New Sunday Times recently with interest, and agree
that parents must pay extra attention to their children, especially with the
advent of the Internet and mobile apps.
In
the previous century, computer-literate children made their families and friends
proud and some even called them geniuses. However, feelings may not be the same when it comes to millennials who are young Internet experts. Parents may be worried that their children could be misusing the Internet and putting themselves at risk of becoming crime victims or suffering other undesired consequences.
Many teenagers make
friends with strangers online because they think having positive thoughts about others makes them optimists, while having suspicions makes them pessimists. That may sound fine, but they forget to think before they leap.
These naïve youngsters have yet to realise that trust is not something they can
build in the twinkling of an eye.
Trapped in a fantasy world, they find
themselves falling in love at the first sight of a stranger’s profile picture
while imagining a happily-ever-after ending and ignoring the possibility that
their feelings might get them into trouble. Young girls,
especially those who are experiencing romance for the first time, are often unaware that they could become the victims of sexual predators. They could be sexually assaulted or harassed, or worse, murdered.
There have been cases where people were conned by manipulative individuals whose objective is to make easy money. These culprits usually target working men and women who are lonely and desperate for companionship.
As
for children, their exposure to issues on the Internet
may bring them danger. They are not mature enough to understand and think
rationally about what they see online, thus making them jump to
conclusions. Some issues require critical thinking and some articles lack validity and
reliability. It is feared that children will believe the
wrong information, or worse, apply what they read on the Internet in real life.
This explains
why some children spend their free time discussing serious and
sensitive issues such as politics, sex, race, religion and extremism. Misunderstandings and misinterpretations of these issues may result in risky
actions and unwise decisions, like the 14-year-old teenager who was
suspected of trying to join Islamic State last month.
Cyberspace is not a safe playground for our kids. They may go astray and get all of us in trouble, if they explore this borderless world without parental supervision.
Courtesy of New Sunday Times
22 March 2015
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