IGF 2021 NRIs collaborative session: Securing the trusted Internet now for the generations to come

Time
Thursday, 9th December, 2021 (16:05 UTC) - Thursday, 9th December, 2021 (17:05 UTC)
Room
Conference Room 7
About this Session
NRI collaborative session

About

As of 2021, estimates are that 4.66 billion people have access to the Internet. Each day, people are involved in billions of online transactions, from banking to emailing, from searching to reading. Whilst shifting to the center of our everyday lives, the Internet poses a plethora of threats that many are unaware of. At present, there is a cyberattack every 39 seconds, with many individuals and organisations simply not adequately educated on the dangers that the Internet poses. The Internet, our Internet, must be protected to ensure that it can be enjoyed sustainably and securely for our own generation and many more to come. 

This is made even more important when considering that, according to Unicef, 33% of children have Internet access. Though there is a significant disparity in children’s access to the Internet in high-income and low-income countries (87% to 6%), the push toward digital inclusion indicates that more children will begin to foray into the digital sphere. Beyond cyberattacks, the major threats to children online have been said to be cyberbullying, cyber predators, phishing, and posting inappropriately. 

There is much education required across all levels of society, in every society, about the importance of security and trust online.

Description 

Hybrid Format of the Session: 

60-minutes interactive roundtable discussion with introductory remarks and open floor for questions and answers.

Expected Outcomes

Understanding specific challenges and examples of good practices on local levels, as well as strengthening collaboration networks between the NRIs on these issues.

Discussion Facilitation

The moderator will follow the agreed set of policy questions and will allow for introductory, case study remarks by the NRIs speakers. This will be followed by engaging other present participants into developing an interactive discussion.

Online participation

A dedicated online moderator will be placed next to the onsite moderator. All participants will be using the online speaking queue to be treated equally in their requests for interventions. All input presentations will be made available at the IGF website and links will be shared via the online tool.

Organizers

  1. Italy IGF, Titti Cassa
  2. IGF-USA, Dustin Loup
  3. Spanish IGF, Felix Hernandez and Jorge Perez Martinez
  4. Mauritius IGF, Mahendranath Busgopaul
  5. Namibia IGF, Josaphat Vijanda Tjiho
  6. West Africa IGF, Mary Uduma
  7. Benin IGF, Kossi Amessinou, Alapini Muriel
  8. Côte d'Ivoire IGF, Salyou Funny
  9. Lebanon IGF, Zeina BOU HARB, Layal Bahnam
  10. Asia Pacific regional IGF, Jennifer Chung
  11. Argentina IGF, Olga Cavalli

Connection to SDGs

Key Takeaways (* deadline 2 hours after session)
1. Child online safety is a growing problemme around the world which may have devastating consequences. There is an urgent need to address them through multistakeholder discussion frameworks which would include traditional stakeholders, but also psychologists, teachers and parents. 2. Continuous capacity development is needed to understand the matter and develop appropriate actions.
Call to Action (* deadline 2 hours after session)
Age limit on the use of the Internet and social media may be helpfully. HHowever, beside any age verification technics, a strong capacity development effort is needed for everyone, adults and children, to learn ways of responsible and safe behavior online. This especially calls for attention when using social media without any guidance and supervision.
2. Summary of Issues Discussed

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3. Key Takeaways

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