Around 30 percent of Indian school-going children accessing internet have experienced some kind of cyber harm like cyber bullying, cyber stalking, defamation and hacking, a study done by telecom service provider Uninor said here Monday.
The survey was done across 29 schools and covered nearly 10,500 children across seven states.
"At Uninor, we firmly believe that our new users should be equipped not just with the means to access internet but with the right information and support system to be able to navigate the digital world safely," Morten Karlsen Sorby, chief executive officer, Uninor, said.
Earlier in 2013, a Telenor Group-Boston Consulting Group study revealed that 134 million Indian children would be active on internet by 2017, up from 39.5 million in 2012. This study was done in 12 countries and showed that Indian children face the worst risk combination of high access and low resilience.
The survey reveals that 34 percent of children rarely speak to their parents about their online activities.
Based on the findings of the survey, Uninor has initiated the WebWise programme with the objective to build resilience amongst children against internet-related risks. Through WebWise, Uninor has committed to make young customers safe online.
It aims to create awareness on internet safety for children and familiarize them with habits that can give them a safe online experience.
"WebWise is an initiative with an objective of equipping children with knowledge and tools to protect themselves online. Uninor as a responsible corporate entity has taken first step towards making the children web-wise," he added.
Since March, 15,000 children have been covered under this programme. With its commitment to provide safe online experience to its customers, Uninor plans to extend this programme further and cover additional 20,000 children by January next year.
