""We must operate in an integrated system that includes parent-child dialogue, establishing rules, laws, and the use of technological tools to stop the deterioration of discourse on social networks." This was said by a representative of the 'Seal Forum' in the Knesset Science and Technology Committee headed by MK Moshe Gafni, which convened this morning (Monday) with the participation of Knesset members, representatives from the Ministry of Justice, the Cyber Department of the Israel Police, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Public Services, the Council for Child Welfare, ERAN - Mental First Aid, Internet service providers, cellular companies, and more, to discuss dealing with the severe damage caused to youth as a result of prolonged and anonymous exposure to social networks and websites.
The committee noted the phenomenon in which many teenagers suffer from prolonged harassment, boycotts, and threats via social media that have led them to suicide attempts that have even succeeded. "Indeed, introducing technology that will prevent such cases is often not the final solution, but rather the trigger for creating intergenerational dialogue between parents and children, thereby providing a great educational benefit, and breaking the concealment on the part of the teenagers and the ignoring on the part of the parents that could even save lives," said a representative of 'Hotem', and presented the position paper issued by the "Hotem Forum," headed by Rabbi Yaakov Ariel, in collaboration with 'Machon Bidach', regarding the severe harm that social media and the Internet are causing to teenagers.
The head of the committee, MK Moshe Gafni, said: "Technological developments have intensified the harm to youth and adults. The Internet allows the whole world to see the vulnerability, and this creates a terrible and unprecedented thing. We are in an era in which it is possible to carry out activities that will literally destroy a person!""
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Police representatives said that the police had established a new cyber squad division, but clarified: "Even if a crime was committed online, not everything can be handled since companies are not bound by the law in Israel.".
The Council for Child Welfare added that it is easier to engage in bullying on the Internet, due to the anonymity that allows browsing and harming without the need for identification.
The position paper published by 'Hotem' states that there are technological means today that can provide a solution to this type of problem. "The use of technological tools that exist today makes it possible to protect the teenager, without compromising his privacy. Allowing parents to return to the field, strengthen the critical parental presence in our generation and return the Internet to being a playground for teenagers and not just a battlefield for violent fights," the forum representative explained. "There are services provided by Internet providers that do not allow parents to access their child's social network account, such as their child's Facebook, thus allowing maximum protection of their privacy and the trust between parents and children. However, in the event of a warning or serious bullying, the parent will receive the message directly in their email inbox - even if it occurred in the child's personal message box, and thus the parent can receive real-time information that can save their child, and it is worth checking out this option.".
