The recent uproar over British paedophile Richard Huckle has reminded us again that we slack in taking notice and action against one of the most prevalent forms of cybercrime — online sex predators, who are lurking in the dark edges of the cyberworld, waiting to pounce at any opportunity they get.
While we enjoy the many perks of the cyberworld, it is sad indeed that there are others who are using the technology for their own selfish advantage. Approximately one in seven (13 per cent) of young Internet users receive unwanted sexual solicitations, as reported by the United States Department of Justice. The department also reported that a staggering 76 per cent of Internet-initiated sex crime offences take place in online chat rooms or social media platforms. It is apparent that these online sex predators favour mobile chat apps (WeChat, Facebook Messenger, etc) to seek their prey, especially in Asia.
Over the past two years, Malaysia’s statistics showed that 80 per cent of reported rape cases were initiated online by sex predators. And yet, we often need to be reminded that our family is at stake here whilst they are enjoying the wonders of cyberspace. It is not that we don’t trust our family, especially the younger ones, to be more careful, but we often don’t realise that these online sex predators go all out to entice them in ways that we may not even be aware of. To add further, young victims fall prey to such crimes mostly out of curiosity or simply to seek attention that they do not get from their own families.
As these predators get more creative by the day, action needs to be taken. We need our authorities to establish more legislation to deter online sex predators. With only a five per cent conviction rate, it’s no wonder that many of these predators get away with their acts. While many countries like Singapore, Australia, Britain, France and Canada already have laws enforced to deal with such sexual grooming, there are many more countries that need to apply the same legislation.
We need to take charge, act fast and hard if we value society’s safety. While new laws may take some time to pass, it is still a step closer to protecting society from such horrifying encounters and sexual grooming rather than do nothing about it. Laws that punish such online sex predators need to be put in place to tackle and warn these predators and make them responsible for
their actions.
In the case of Huckle, there should be laws to convict foreigners of such sexual crimes, or at least have the right to detain and send them back home for conviction. The government should also carry out awareness campaigns with schools, non-governmental organisations, social activists and other communities to drive home the importance of keeping our young safe in cyberspace.
Society also needs to realise that everyone has a responsibility to protect our loved ones. The education system can start by getting teachers to increase awareness in younger ones by teaching them about dangerous activities online. While Asia still finds it hard to talk about the taboo subject of sex in school, it’s about time that we try because educating the young from an early age may prevent them from becoming victims. Their curiosity about this subject will be satisfied and they will certainly have a better understanding of the matter at hand.
Parents and families play a huge role in this issue as well. We need to spend more time with our young ones. It is such a simple and logical role and yet, many refuse or excuse themselves from such responsibility. The more time we spend with our young ones, the more we know what they are up to. These little darlings have one major trait during their growing years, and that is attention-seeking. If parents pay attention to their young ones, they won’t need to seek out other ways to get it.
Parents need to be involved and aware of what their kids are doing online. Talk to them often, and set some ground rules. It’s not about strict controls but the right balance in educating our young on the good and bad of cyberspace. By doing so, they will be more alert to online imposters trying to befriend them. Truth be told, spending a few minutes with your child a day is a good measure. No one said we have to spend 12 hours a day with our young ones, but it is how we educate and bring them, such as up by creating awareness of cyberspace crimes, that will best protect our children.
In Huckle’s case, more than 200 children became his victims before he was caught. Although he may have been convicted, we do not know how many other Huckles are out there, roaming free and probably grooming their next victim.
Ahmad Kushairi is editor of BOTs, the weekly tech section in Life&Times. Trained in Maths, he has since traded his problem-solving skills with writing about how tech has helped to transform the world for the better