SINGAPORE: A new phenomenon called "cyberbaiting",
where kids taunt their teachers, film the incident and post it
online to embarrass the teacher or the school, has been
identified.
Three in 10 Singapore teachers have personally
experienced this or know of another teacher who has, said the
latest Norton Online Family Report.
Norton said this could be why 60 per cent of
teachers in Singapore say being friends with students on social
networks exposes them to risks.
Still, 75 per cent of them continue to "friend" their
students.
Sixty-eight per cent of them said their school has a code of
conduct on how teachers and students should communicate with each
other through social media.
Ninety-three per cent of teachers wanted more online safety
education in schools, a position supported by most parents.
In Singapore, 71 per cent of kids said they have had a negative
experience online with nearly half saying they had a serious
negative encounter, such as receiving inappropriate pictures from
strangers, being bullied or becoming the victim of
cybercrime.
Another cause for concern is the high number of kids secretly using
their parents' credit cards to shop online for music, video games
and even event tickets. Twenty-three per cent of kids globally
admit to doing without their parents' knowledge.
Nearly half of the parents surveyed reported that their child has
used their credit or debit card without permission.
Most parents in Singapore have rules on how their kids should use
the Internet.
Kids who follow the rules are also less likely to have a negative
online experience.
The Norton Online Family Report conducted almost 20,000 online
surveys in 24 countries including Singapore from February to March
this year.
Respondents included about 4,500 children aged between eight and
17.
- CNA/fa