TWO years ago, four teenagers were arrested in Abeokuta, Ogun State, for beheading a girl, allegedly for money rituals. They claimed they were inspired by guidelines from a page on Facebook. Also sometimes in August, a 17-year-old girl was kidnapped by a 23-year-old man whom she met online. According to Police in Mumbai, CCTV camera footage showed the girl getting down from the train and walking alone at Kylan Station, Mumbai in India. The police, after tracking her phone number, and with the help of the tip-off from a man who made them know that he saw her around, were able to find her. She and the accused became friends on Instagram and ‘fell in love.’ In like manner, a girl in Ohio, United States of America, a 12-year-old, was found after being declared missing by the police after going with a 34-year-old man she met online. She was tracked down to a swimming pool where she was with the man. These are just few of the cases of young people who got entangled one way or the other due to negative activities on the social media.
As much as the social media can be a very toxic environment for children below the age of 18, there are many benefits that children can derive from therein under supervision. Some of these benefits are: educational skills such as digital literacy, navigating online platforms, navigating online platforms, using technology effectively even from tender age, writing and art. They also get more knowledge by presenting their ideas through commenting, posting, expressions, content creations and by learning about diverse cultures and current events. Children can also learn how to create and multimedia contents interpretations. Many children are involved in online marketing and branding. Children have been able to use online resources and tutorials to learn programmes like coding. A lot of children are learning languages online. Children mingle with professionals, mentors and other children with similar interests who can help them to build themselves even in their various areas of interests.
However, some of the negative effects this can have on children cannot be over-emphasised. Many children get addicted to the social media and their formal studies suffer the consequences. If the amount of time spent on social media is not regulated, it will definitely have an adverse effect on the kids involved. Some children get bullied and harassed by social media friends and this may affect their self-esteem. Some even commit suicide just as in the case of 12–year-old Rebecca from Texas, USA, in 2013 who took her life due to extensive cyber bullying via multiple online platforms. There is also the risk of children being exposed to inappropriate contents like pornography. A lot of predators are lurking in the walls of the social media and these children are usually the preys if they are not guided. Some children get involved in sexting and online exploitation by getting involved in activities with people of questionable characters who introduce them to many more atrocities connected to abnormal interactions as far as sex is concerned. There have been cases of children who got molested via people they’ve met online leading to loss of lives in some cases. Many of these kids have unrealistic expectations through interactions with other children on the social space. A child from an average home may want the parents to do more, just because he or she met a child who is from a very rich home who dresses better or goes to a better school online. Children have been groomed as killers by people they met online just as the case of the four teenagers cited above. Just one unguided interaction is all it takes. A lot of these predators blackmail these children and bank on the fact that many of them are eager and too enthusiastic to make money. There was a case of a 14-year-old boy who was lured by two of his friends and got beheaded by a cleric they met online. This is an example too many.
How do we protect the children from the harmful effects of social media? Parents need to teach their children about online safety and responsibilities. Parents can set up parental control on their children’s phone to enable them to monitor the children’s activities at all times and to time their online presence so it won’t affect their studies. There are many apps on Goggle store that can connect a child’s phone to the parents to allow for easy monitoring. Children should be taught not to share their personal information with anyone on Facebook to avoid being tracked by anyone. Parents can also engage their children by asking them to share what they do online every time. The usage of strong password cannot be overemphasised. Parents and guardians can guide their children and wards on how to set up their passwords so as to avoid their accounts getting hacked. The importance of the two-step verification should be taught as well.
Children should be taught how to identify cyber bullying and be encouraged to report any form of bullying immediately. They should be warned against making unnecessary friendship with strangers online and be very cautious when interacting with anyone. Parents can make it a habit to ask their children questions about their experiences online regularly. This will help parents to know when they need to wade in, in case the children are having an issue. As a parent, try to be updated on online trends. Also try to understand possible risks yourself. There are online safety workshops and webinars on the cyberspace where you can learn about online safety. Join and partake in discussions therein for the sake of your children. As much as the world is now digital, we should always remember it could be very toxic for children if there is no proper monitoring. The digital world is a very tough world and only the wise can manoeuvre it with wisdom and safety.
- Ishola is on the staff of Nigerian Tribune.
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