Every other young person has been offended on the Internet
Half of all young people have been subjected to someone lying or writing unfair things about them on the Internet. Every fifth has experienced someone else using their identity on the Internet. Despite offences of this kind, however, young people expose themselves on the Internet in a manner that is unthinkable in real life. These are the results of a study commissioned by the Swedish Data Inspection Board.
Insults on the Internet are becoming increasingly common. A survey commissioned by the Swedish Data Inspection Board shows that every other young person in Sweden has been subjected to someone writing unfair things about them on the Internet. One out of five has experienced someone else using their identity, and 29 per cent of the queried girls say they have been subjected to sexual harassment on the Internet. Eighty-six per cent have published photographs of themselves. However, there is a great deal of resistance to others publishing photographs without asking permission, but 30 per cent have been subjected to this.
“It is alarming and disquieting that young people have been offended on the Internet to the large extent indicated in the survey,” says Göran Gräslund, Director General for the Swedish Data Inspection Board. Young people expose themselves on the Internet in a manner that is unthinkable in real life. Unpleasant experiences and increased know-how have not made them more prudent. They do not seem to consider the fact that imprudence today can be devastating in the future.
The majority of young people queried in the survey say that parents have very poor insight into their children’s Internet activity. The Swedish Data Inspection Board performed a similar survey last year. A comparison to that survey indicates that more young people are consciously concealing their Internet activities from their parents.
“Behaviour that involves risk does not seem to be attributable to lack of knowledge; rather, the problem seems to be a basic attitude to personal integrity. If we are to change attitudes, everyone must help: decision-makers, teachers and especially parents” says Göran Gräslund.
The study is based on an Internet questionnaire containing 125 questions that was sent to 633 individuals between the ages of 14 and 18. The frequency of responses was 82 per cent, that is 520 people responded. The report, Ungdomar och integritet (“Young people and privacy” only available in Swedish), and basic material can be downloaded from this web site.
We all have something to hide
Read the article by General Director Göran Gräslund.
