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Laptop plan raises fears of misuse [Chennai] [Times of India](Times of India Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) CHENNAI: Teenagers and free laptops could be an explosive combination, fear cyber experts. Though they approve of the government's plan to provide laptops to all students, they feel students as well as their teachers should get counselling and child safety filters should be installed on the computers. The state government will distribute laptop computers to students of classes 11 and 12 and government and aided colleges from September 15. "The scheme will improve the educational outlook of children. But the government should remember that many of them are first generation computer users. If the government does not counsel the parents, the equipment can be misused," said a senior police officer. The city police have received 42 complaints of cyber crime from January this year. "Students easily take an internet connection, which is available at cheap rates. They should be careful about revealing their identity on social networking sites," said the officer. He said that over 60% of parents are computer illiterate in Tamil Nadu. "They will not know what their children are doing on the internet. Proper counseling should be given to parents and children," he said. Though the government is not providing free internet connections with the computers, cyber crime experts say students can always watch unwanted material on pen drives, memory cards, CDs or DVDs. "Technology has penetrated rural areas and it is being misused. Gone are the days when students used to read adult magazines by hiding it in textbooks. Now everything is visual and is saved on pen drives," said K Jaishankar, executive director of Centre for Cyber Victim Counselling. Sebastian Eddassery, master trainer from Interpol on cyber and high tech crime, said, "Children will definitely spend on the internet connection and can be exposed inappropriate content for their age," he said. The solution is to install child safety lock systems and malware in the laptops distributed by the government. Parents should also be taught about the dangers and asked to monitor usage by children. Vidya Reddy of Tulir - Centre for the Prevention and Healing Child Sexual Abuse said no one was decrying the distribution of technology via laptops to economically disadvantaged students. "It will certainly offer exciting possibilities for transforming learning, civic engagement, innovation, entrepreneurship and much more," she said. However, the generation-disconnect rather than the urban-rural divide is a problem, she said. "The older generation is not really tech-savvy. Making young people's engagement with technology enjoyable without being unsafe is important. Even without an internet connection, it is possible to be impacted by the negative aspects of technology," she said. (c) 2011 Bennett, Coleman & Company Limited |