More than 70% students feel that there is no one to help or guide them if they face any problem online.

Parents need to be more open and aware regarding what their children do on Internet as a study conducted by Grameenphone find 70% students feel that there is no one to help or guide them if they face any problem online. As schools, teachers and parents are not equipped to help in such situation.

Grameenphone has recently conducted a study to understand the internet usage patterns and practices of the youth in Bangladesh. The study was conducted among a mix of urban and rural students aged years 11 to 18 who has access to internet with 1500 respondents. This study will help GP to provide safe user experience to the young internet users in the country.

Access to Internet is considered as a catalyst to economic growth in developing countries, therefore it is important that youth feel safe and comfortable on Internet, so that they can use its resources fully for their own development.

“Grameenphone, as a responsible data service provider, wanted to help the youth of Bangladesh to embrace the power of Internet and use it for their development but also keep them safe while using it,” said Mahmud Hossain, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer of Grameenphone.

The study also shows that more than 30% of these users have either been bullied on the internet or has received hate messages. While male students receive more hate messages than their female peer group, female students have been asked to give their personal information to someone they don’t know. These incidents make the student users highly uncomfortable which they share mostly with their friends rather than discussing it with their parents and teachers. Almost 70% of the participants of the study concluded that they would want to help their siblings or friends in similar cases. More than 70% disagree that their teachers or schools are well equipped to share messages or educate regarding cyber-crimes.

“The future looks promising as we get to see that among the 54 million (approx.) internet users in Bangladesh, 85% are in the youth bracket. This means that we getting well equipped to move towards the future along with the rest of the world. On the other hand it is alarming that majority of these people are not well informed regarding cyber-crimes and how to mitigate it,” said Debashis Roy, Head of Corporate Responsibility in Grameenphone.

Grameenphone as a responsible corporate entity has been campaigning for safe internet for young people under its “Internet for All” ambition. The company is also working to build awareness among the youth and their parents regarding safe use of Internet. Recently the company published a Safe Internet Guidebook for Parents. The guidebook is now being distributed around the country along with the Internet Safety leaflet published by the company. It is also conducting Internet safety workshops at 500 schools throughout Bangladesh with the help of BRAC.