Parents’ roles in mitigating cyber threats to children in the new norm

• Main Authors: Abdul Molok, Nurul Nuha, Zulkifli, Zahidah
• Format: Conference or Workshop Item
• Language: English; English
• Published: Lembaga Penduduk dan Pembangunan Keluarga Negara (LPPKN) Kementerian Pembangunan Wanita, Keluarga dan Masyarakat 2021
• Subjects: H61.8 Communication of information; T58.5 Information technology; T58.6 Management information systems
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/94059/1/Full%20Paper%20-Final%20-%20PERKKS%2021.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/94059/7/Certificate%20Pembentang_Dr.%20Nurul%20Nuha%20Abdul%20Molok%20IIUM.jpg; http://irep.iium.edu.my/94059/; https://submit.confbay.com/conf/perkks21
• Institution: Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia

The year 2020 and 2021 are very challenging for both parents and children, where parents work from home (WFH) and children attend online learning at home. Cybersecurity cases are on the rise in Malaysia and around the world in this era of the COVID-19 pandemic and movement control order (MCO). Children are exposed to the use of electronic gadgets such as smartphones, tablets and laptops for e-learning purposes. However, parents find that children can be too dependent on gadgets for other purposes such as playing online games and interacting with friends on social media, to the point of neglecting their learning and compromising their physical and mental health. Despite the advantages of the Internet to children, parents are advised to be vigilant about children’s use of electronic gadgets for online gaming and social media as early as possible so that their children are constantly reminded of cyber threats and how to curb them. As reported in the literature, the top cyber threats to children and teenagers are cyber bullying, sexual grooming, and mental and physical health due to gadget or Internet addiction. This paper aims to identify the parents’ roles in addressing cybersafety and cybersecurity issues among their children. To achieve this aim, surveys were conducted at secondary schools in Selangor and Melaka in 2020 and 2021 to understand the students’ Internet use and their level of cybersecurity awareness. Based on our findings, this paper recommends ways that can be implemented by parents to address cyber threats faced by children in the new norm.