PETALING JAYA: Based on cases of crime against children, oftentimes the perpetrators have already spied on them via social media through the “sharenting” by parents, says a cyber analyst.
The lack of awareness from parents when sharing their children’s personal information is often the main culprit, said Muhammad Ezaly Iman Ramly from Yayasan Digital Malaysia.
“The key to preventing this lies with parents themselves because there’s little that can be done to stop it without awareness of the risks and consequences.
“Right now, there are no specific laws or legal protections (to safeguard) the information parents share about their children online,” he said.
According to Muhammad Ezaly Iman, children who are targeted by online predators are usually first observed through social media posts, an initial stage that can lead to more serious consequences, such as tracking their movements or activities.
If not addressed early, this can eventually lead to more severe crimes, he said.
Sivaselvi Supramaniam, a child protection specialist at Unicef Malaysia, echoed these concerns, warning parents that innocent photos of their children could be exploited for inappropriate purposes, such as the creation of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).“The risks are exacerbated by the increasing use and accessibility of artificial intelligence. CSAM is a serious form of violence against children. Governments must take action to control its harmful spread.
“The government needs to legislate to ensure that the industry will proactively block and filter CSAM, develop CSAM reporting and takedown procedures, and impose an obligation on digital service providers to report CSAM and other online child sexual abuse to the authorities, with a penalty for non-compliance.”
For more on the risks of sharenting and how parents can protect their children’s privacy online, visit Unicef Malaysia’s page on the subject: https://www.unicef.org/malaysia/what-you-need-know-about-sharenting.
