Is age just a number?

In light of the recent cyber attack on SingHealth, it is worth examining what really is safe online. Even on a popular platform like WhatsApp, it is not uncommon to hear of scams, fake news, or even illegal moneylenders soliciting clients (https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/beware-whatsapp-takeover-scams-police). What’s scarier is that many children already have access to WhatsApp, even though it has a 12+ age rating. 

As with most online accounts, it is easy for children to lie about their age; some parents inadvertently do it for them by downloading it for them. It is perhaps useful to initially monitor the child’s activity very closely, as their first exposure to many vices, including pornography, is very likely to come through their phones. One study shows that the exposure could come as early as 8 years (https://fightthenewdrug.org/real-average-age-of-first-exposure/)!

We need to recognise that we have an increasingly smaller window to exert our influence before society takes over. While they are still tied to our apron strings, we have the opportunity to monitor what the children are viewing in seemingly innocuous class chat groups; we pay for the data and phone upgrades, after all. We can then provide our guidance about what is helpful or harmful to them. Too much trust and too little accountability is a recipe for disaster at this tender age. Tragically, all this hazardous material is all just a click away (http://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2018/apr/25/madhya-pradesh-cops-bust-child-porn-whatsapp-group-1806074.html). 

It is not a matter of if, but when our children will first encounter pornography. But we can be prepared for it. There are many resources for parents and teachers can use to talk to children about it; one of them is found here: https://s3.amazonaws.com/media.cloversites.com/27/27f203c5-b6e0-4713-bd7b-e4c7daf4edc1/documents/Elementary_Resource.pdf. 

We may not feel comfortable talking about it, but if we miss the opportunity, the first words the children will hear on this matter will be from a complete stranger. 

Thank you for reading. Do comment below on questions you may have, or what you’d like to see covered. I look forward to hearing from you. Stay tuned for the next post!