More than half the children in the 8 to 12 age groups in Nepal are exposed to one or more cyber-risks such as cyber bullying, video game addiction, online grooming and online sexual behaviours when using online platforms, a recent study reveals.

Cyber bullying (49 percent) tops among all risks followed by online sexual behaviours (26 pc) and meeting online strangers (15pc), the study shows. The risk is significantly higher for those active on social media via mobile.

The DQ Institute, an international think tank committed to improving digital education, culture and innovation through cross-sector collaborations, published its inaugural DQ impact report last week. The report summarises the current state of online child safety and digital citizenship, based on a study that included 38,000 children aged 8-12 across 29 countries.

Globally, the cyber-risk exposure for children of this age group is 56 percent. This becomes acute when children own a mobile phone and actively engage in social media. In such cases, children have a 20 percent higher likelihood of cyber-risk exposure and have 12 more hours of screen time per week than children who do not own mobile phones.

DQ Institute Founder Dr Yuhyun Park says, “From an early age, children’s use of social media through personal mobile phones has been excessive. Before they start actively engaging in social media or owing a mobile phone, we need to empower our children with digital citizenship skills to mitigate cyber-risks and maximise the opportunity of technology.”

#DQEveryChild is a strategic global movement run by the DQ Institute in association with the World Economic Forum to empower children with DQ at the start of their digital lives. It utilises research-based online platform known as DQWorld.net, for teaching and assessing digital citizenship skills to children ages 8-12 years old. DQ World.net can be easily ‘plugged and played’ into any school and is free.