Safe Internet Campaign Encourages Parents To Supervise Children’s Internet Use

KANGAR, May 18 (Bernama) -- The Safe Internet Campaign has been described as an effective medium in raising awareness among parents on the importance of monitoring internet and gadget use among minors to protect them from exposure to inappropriate content on social media.

Civil servant Ainul Hanina Halim, 32, said the campaign has raised parents’ awareness of the need to monitor their children’s internet use, as various negative content and inappropriate advertisements can appear while they are online.

Ainul Hanina said the campaign highlights the importance of parents reminding their children about the dangers of unsupervised internet use, while keeping an eye on the content they access.

“My husband and I always monitor our three children, aged between three and 10, when they use gadgets, including limiting their screen time,” she told Bernama after a Safe Internet briefing by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), held in conjunction with the D’Bendang Perpaduan Carnival for the Bintong state constituency here today.

The Safe Internet Campaign was launched last year, involving 8,979 schools nationwide and 420,290 students. This year, the campaign focuses on wider community participation, including parents monitoring their children’s use of social media.

Sharing a similar view, housewife Nor Azlina Mohd Noor, 38, said parents today need to take a more active role in monitoring their children’s internet use, as they are easily influenced by content on social media.

She said the campaign comes at the right time, as it serves as a reminder for parents to limit their children’s screen time and to be aware of the apps and content they access.

“This is to ensure they (children) are not exposed to things that could affect their emotional development and learning. Sometimes, when children use smartphones, they can come across all sorts of content, so we need to keep a close watch on what they view and access.  

“When campaigns like this are held, at the very least, they help make parents more aware of the dangers of the internet and the importance of controlling their children’s gadget use,” said the mother of two.

-- BERNAMA