A major report on children's use of technology has
recommended the government to set up a child internet safety
council that would draw up a strategy on keeping children
safeonline.
The council would report to the prime minister and would aim to
improve regulation and education around internet use, tackling
problems such as online bullying and "suicide" sites.
Clinical psychologist Tanya Byron, who wrote the report,
investigated potentially harmful, but legal, internet content. The
Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) is
working on the issue of criminals making illegal contact with
children on the web.
Byron said internet service providers should offer and advertise
kitemarked parental control software to help parents
protect their children. She said industry should take more
responsibility for supporting families through transparent codes of
practice in areas such as user-generated content. Her report also
called for better regulation of online advertising and safer search
features.
The classification system for video games should also be
reformed, Byron said.
"My recommendations will help children and young people make the
most of what all digital and interactive technologies can offer,
while enabling them and their parents to navigate all these new
media waters safely and with the knowledge that more is being done
by government and the internet and video game industries to help
and support them."