NEWS: New site teaches safety on the Web

SUBANG: The Business Software Alliance (BSA) launched a website this week to help teachers, parents and children learn about the hazards they could face when they go on the Internet.

The site at www.b4usurf.org provides information, entertainment and educational content aimed at young people, as well as guidance for parents and teachers about dangers such as sexual predators and identity thieves.

It also educates them about the importance of respecting intellectual property when downloading songs, video and other entertainment.

B4Usurf offers sample lesson plans for teachers, as well. It also provides parents with tips on how to guide and monitor their children’s surfing activity, as well as information on how to protect one’s PC from online fraud, spam, viruses, worms and trojan programs.

The site was also launched in Singapore, China, the Philippines and Taiwan during the past few weeks and will be launched in India and Hong Kong by year-end, said BSA director of antipiracy for Asia, Tarun Sawney. Local-language content is available in all countries where the website has been launched.

“The project has been well-received by education officials across the region, but the hard work of promoting safe and responsible Internet usage by the young still lies ahead for BSA and its partners in the initiative,” Sawney said.

In particular, BSA needs to keep working with education officials in countries around the region to convince schools and parents to use the website and provide feedback on its content and effectiveness, he said.

APIIT Education Group managing director Parmjit Singh said: “It is our duty as educators to provide a safe learning environment by developing policies to govern how the Internet is used within the school environment and at home.”

“More importantly, we place a high priority on a cybersafety educational programme for students and teachers,” he added. APIIT hosted the launch of the website at its smart school here.

In a speech delivered by his special officer, Deputy Education Minister Dr Wee Ka Siong praised APIIT for taking part in the BSA campaign and urged other schools to follow in its footsteps.