MHA releases booklet on cyber fraud for teenagers

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The Home Ministry Monday released a booklet telling adolescents to be cautious when an online chat partner showers them with too many compliments on their appearance in a short span of acquaintance. The booklet also suggested that teenagers should not get aggressive with a cyber bully but politely tell him to stop, failing which the person must be blocked and, if needed, one's parents alerted.

These are some useful tips from an illustrated e-handbook put together by the home ministry to educate pre-teens and teens on risks like, cyber grooming, online gaming, email fraud and how to avoid and counter them. The booklet, prepared in consultation with cybersecurity experts, was uploaded on the home ministry website on Monday.

Children are highly vulnerable as they are exposed to cyberspace with limited understanding of cyber threats and safeguards. They like to experiment, learn new things and use new technologies. "While experimenting is a good way to learn, it is equally important that proper guidance is provided to children so that they can protect themselves from the adverse impact of cyber technology," it is stated in introductory pages of the handbook.

The book focuses on five key cyber threats faced by young netizens: cyberbullying, defined as intentionally harassing someone with rude, mean and hurtful messages; cyber grooming, where someone builds an emotional bond with children through social media with an intention to gain their trust for sexually exploiting them; online gaming, where the child may be exposed to bullying and cheating; email fraud; and online transaction fraud.

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