According to media reports, the girl who went missing over a month ago was found in Lahore, and police claim she had married the suspect of her own free will. The 13-year-old girl who used to play games online went missing a few weeks back from her home in the Shah Faisal Colony, Karachi.
The widespread technological innovation, including high-speed Internet connectivity, has changed Pakistani society. The magical digital world has allowed children to explore new information and discover applications that allow users to play and communicate with others face-to-face or through messages.
Once children have access to the internet, they are also exposed to inappropriate information, images, and people, intentionally or unintentionally. Usually, children have no intention to visit such websites; however, chances of running obscene material are quite high during web surfing or downloading videos or music because several links frequently pop up on video and music websites. The digital world exposes children and adolescents to numerous opportunities but also dangers that may harm their protection and well-being.
Sexual predators, pedophiles, and criminals are making virtual connections with children through gaming and social media platforms. Ideally, it is the duty of parents, teachers, cellular mobile operators, and internet service providers to educate children on how to avoid online risks and threats. However, imparting such important information is either limited or absent.
While conducting a session with parents on the vulnerability of children in the digital world, many parents admitted that their children have uninterrupted 24/7 access to their mobiles and laptops. Most parents don’t know who is on the friend list of their children and with whom they interact regularly.
“Harmful content” is anything online which causes a person distress or harm. The digital world is flooded with such contents which are not suitable for children. It is not only pornographic material but also racist and violent material and content inciting substance abuse, suicide, and other forms of self-harm.
Research on the online behavior of children revealed that almost one in five kids talk to strangers online daily. There is no need to elaborate that the majority of these strangers tried to make connections with the children and later exploited them.
In a country like Pakistan, outdoor sports for children have died down mainly due to the absence of public spaces. Many parents also don’t allow their children to participate in outdoor sports, even in front of their house. To engage the children at home, parents allow them to use computers, tablets, or mobile phones and play online games. Online gaming has some benefits, yet there are obvious risks to the well-being of children.
Children need guidance and supervision from parents, elder siblings, or teachers on games to play, when to play, and how much time they should spend. Similarly, gaming addiction, in-game bullying, and online grooming are some of the risks that may harm the child.
Several online games allow the participants to play games and have discussions with unknown people. Through these games, the criminals start the conversation with many children and gradually build the trust of a few. There are reported cases in which innocent children, both boys and girls, were trapped by criminals through online games.
In many traditional societies, such as ours, parents usually don’t allow their children to talk to them freely. Due to the communication gap, children feel reluctant to share any inappropriate content or contact they ever come across on the internet.
It is necessary for parents that they should talk to their children about online safety and protection. Being an adult, it is our responsibility to discuss and guide our children to stay away from material or interaction which is harmful to them.
There is no denying that the issue of online protection confronts numerous challenges. Keeping the complexity of the problem, a multi-pronged strategy is required. Though some efforts to improve online child protection are already underway yet, much more has to be done to tackle the problem.
The provincial child protection authorities, in collaboration with mobile companies, should design and introduce online protection in school curricula. The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016 aims to curb online child sexual abuse and harassment under Section 21 and Section 22. The PECA law needs to be employed effectively in cases related to the online abuse of children.
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