Geneva: Europe and the Arabs

The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on Violence against Children, Najat Maalla M'jid, warned of the increasing dangers of cyberbullying and its serious effects on children, calling for faster and more comprehensive action from the internet community to ensure their protection. According to the UN Daily News, a copy of which we received Wednesday morning, Maalla M'jid stated during the opening of an interactive dialogue on her annual report before the Human Rights Council in Geneva: "We meet again today in a world full of challenges, where children are paying the heaviest price. The protection and well-being of children are threatened by increasing conflict, displacement, poverty, violence, and multiple deprivations."

The report indicated that cyberbullying can cause psychological distress and permanent reputational damage, and in some tragic cases, can drive children to suicide.

It also noted that the rapid spread of generative artificial intelligence technologies is reshaping this phenomenon, making bullying faster, more targeted, and harder to detect, with the use of fake images and videos to humiliate and threaten children online. Moalla Mjid stressed that current efforts to combat cyberbullying remain fragmented, calling on the technology sector to make child safety and privacy mandatory and to conduct due diligence on children's rights at all stages of artificial intelligence development.

She added, "Effective responses can no longer be postponed. Building a safer digital environment for children is not an option, it's a necessity."

She also emphasized the importance of involving children themselves in finding solutions, saying, "Digital spaces should not be places where harm is reported but not addressed. They should be places where help is provided quickly, safely, and humanely."

The Special Representative concluded the press release with a call to design a digital future in which children participate, adding, "Don't just design the digital future for children, design it with us."

It is worth noting that four years ago, as more and more children and young people were spending more time online, cyberbullying remained the biggest concern regarding their safety online, according to a survey conducted by the International Telecommunication Union on Twitter and LinkedIn. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) conducted this survey on these two platforms to mark Safer Internet Day, celebrated on February 8, in order to understand people's biggest concerns about children's online activity.

Users of the two platforms were asked to rank three common online concerns: cyberbullying, data protection vulnerabilities, and grooming, which refers to predators who intentionally exploit children online.

Nearly 40 percent of respondents cited cyberbullying as their primary concern, followed by 27 percent and 26 percent respectively.

Cyberbullying is bullying that takes place using digital technologies. It can occur on social media, messaging platforms, online gaming platforms, and mobile phones.

It is a repetitive behavior intended to intimidate, upset, or defame targeted individuals. New Threats Emerge

Survey participants also raised other concerns not included in the survey, such as excessive phone use and whether children are aware of online threat reporting mechanisms.

The emergence of cyberbullying as the biggest concern is not surprising, given how deeply the internet has permeated almost every aspect of life.

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) stated that young people spend more time online than any other age group, estimating that 71 percent of 15- to 24-year-olds use the internet, compared to just 57 percent for all other age groups.

The internet has also evolved over time, leading to the emergence of new threats, making the protection of children and young people online more important than ever.