Portal:Digital Safety

What is Digital Safety?

The digital world is inherently more vulnerable to malicious intent via badware, viruses, hackers, etc. Some argue that youth are more susceptible to sexual predators and bullies through cyberspace as well; however, often “new” dangers are “real world” threats now encountered through different mediums. There is a history of panic surrounding the introduction of new media forms into society, and a careful, objective strategy is needed to protect our young people without hindering their development.

Technological Architectures The spaces in which individuals connect on the Internet, as well as through other technologies such as mobile phones and networked gaming consuls, each have their own particular architectures. They are built with specific allowances and capabilities, in attempt to dictate the forms and types of interactions that take place within those spaces. Like any space, these configurations can be re-interpreted and re-inscribed by creative users (who almost always find ways to bend - or break - the rules), but nevertheless, a particular mode of communication and connection evolves for each new technology that catches our attention, and enables connection. Read More...

Narratives Chung-Hee Kim, C-H to his friends, likes to think of himself as a “normal” American teenager. He lives in a modest town in a suburb of a large midwestern city. He’s a freshman at the local high school. His parents are nice, quiet, but a bit square. They don’t “get” him, and they really don’t get the whole online thing, but they’re OK. More important, they don’t get in the way, especially when it comes to using the computer in his bedroom. When he’s not in school or hanging out with his friends, C-H spends most of his free time online. He’s got a MySpace page that he keeps up to date with the latest features: his favorite music plays when a visitor hits the page, they’re met with pictures of his favorite movie actresses, and his friends have posted a long list of comments every time he makes a move. He’s got a Facebook account, but fewer of his friends are on there, so he goes back only once or twice a week to look something up or check out the Wall on his page. He tries out every new service that’s hot before most of his friends do. Mostly, Chung-Hee is into Second Life. He’s got an avatar he calls “VirtualC-H” – a young, dashing, twenty-first-century knight, who zips around in a partial suit of body armor. When he was visiting his cousins in South Korea last summer, he played around on CyWorld, and he’s had an account on There.com. Most of his friends are into World of Warcraft. But Second Life is where it’s at for C-H. Read More... Problems and Solutions Problems and Solutions - Digital Safety Read More... Relevant Research and Articles Internet Safety Technical Task Force Final Report (2009) Internet and the Public at Large (2002), p. 41 et seq. Eurobarometer: Safer Internet (EU)(2006) Livingstone: UK Children Go Online (UK) (2005), p. 22 et seq. Safety Awareness Fact Tools: Public Report (2004) Most teens say they've met strangers online (2006) Children talking to childLine about the internet (2005) The Appropriation of New Media by Youth (2006) [childrens' safety depends largely on their own actions] Read More...