Telenor initiates campaign, educates 60,000 children to combat digital bullying

NEW DELHI: Digital communications open massive opportunities to people everywhere. But as the world is at our fingertips, so are risks of unwanted attention. Prioritizing digital resilience and online safety on the agenda, 20,000 Telenor Group employees reached out to children and parents to combat digital bullying.

Telenor’s own Safe Internet studies conducted in late 2015 and early 2016 found a high incidence of cyberbullying in its Asian markets, with 53% of school students in India, 49% in Bangladesh, 37% of Malaysian and 33% of Thai students having experienced either ‘being bullied or disturbed online’, ‘being bullied by the same person both online and offline’ or even having actually engaged in the act of bullying others online.

“Digital communication and internet access create enormous opportunities for people, business and society. However, the internet does not only connect people with good intentions and this is unfortunately a reality that children can face. We believe it’s important to educate and raise awareness early on so that young people can make wise online choices and be safe online. As a global mobile and Internet provider, it is also our responsibility to address this,” said Sigve Brekke, President& CEO of Telenor Group.

To highlight the rise of digital bullying in Asia and as part of its focus on providing Safe Internet for All, Telenor Group is centering its annual day dedicated to customers around taking a stand against digital bullying. During the day, 20,000 Telenor employees in 13 countries will visit schools and public arenas to inform and engage more than 60,000 children and parents in Safe Internet use. Events in Europe and Asia range from workshops at local schools and shopping malls, to larger gatherings together with partners and celebrity Safe Internet supporters, at arenas such as Ullevål Stadium in Oslo, Tivoli in Copenhagen and Pakistan Sports Complex, Islamabad.

To engage all employees, Telenor kickstarted a Digital Relay in social media with #UseHeart, which will travel from Digi, Malaysia in the east, via Asia and Central-Europe, to Scandinavia. Across its Asia markets, Telenor will also be holding mass events where concerned members of the public can sign pledges against cyberbullying, as well as obtain more information on spotting the signs of this increasingly pervasive threat.

“Digital bullying is a challenge that manifests itself in all our markets, but the awareness varies from country to country, such as in Norway, where we’ve been online for more than 20 years, to emerging markets in Asia, for example Myanmar, where internet access has only become widespread in the past two years. A common factor though is that the mobile phone has increasingly become children’s primary access point to the internet, making it harder for parents to know what their kids do online and underlining the importance of equipping children as well as parents with Safe Internet knowledge,” said Brekke.