More than 175,000 children go online for the first time every day - UNICEF
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) revealed today that more than 175,000 children go online for the first time every day. This means that for every half second, there's a new child going online, Rappler.com reported.
The organization acknowledged the benefits of this level of digital access, saying that it exposes to children to "a wealth of benefits and opportunities." However, they also stress that access may also expose children to harm, such as " access to harmful content, sexual exploitation and abuse, cyberbullying, and misuse of their private information."
Laurence Chandy, UNICEF Director of Data, Research and Policy, says: "While governments and the private sector have made some progress in formulating policies and approaches to eliminate the most egregious online risks, more effort must be made to fully understand and protect children's online lives."
The agency also said that 1 in 3 internet users is a child but expressed worry as they said that too little is being done to "protect them from the perils of the digital world." They've outlined just what these perils are, and the current status quo as to how children are being protected in their publicly accessible study, "The State of the World's Children 2017: Children in a digital world."
The UNICEF stresses that protecting children online is the responsibility of everyone including governments, families, schools and other institutions. The agency, in a press release, offered a set of action points that they believe will help enhance the safety of children going online while still being able to enjoy the benefits of the internet.