Cape Town – The Film and Publication Board (FPB) has ramped up efforts to raise awareness about the dangers of exposing children to pornography and child sexual-abuse material.
This after the findings of various reports suggest that SA children’s exposure to pornography has increased.
A 2021 report by the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) has equally revealed that a child is being sexually abused every two minutes online.
“This is a problem that requires all of us – regulators, operators, parents, teachers, and caregivers alike – to work together locally and internationally, because this crime transcends a single jurisdiction.
“As part of the international response to child sexual abuse and distribution of child sexual-abuse material), FPB is a member of INHOPE, a global network of 50 member hotlines in the identification and removal of child sexual-abuse material from the digital word and the analysis of suspected child sexual-abuse material cases for the SAPS,” the report said.
“The FPB also monitors compliance with the Films and Publications Act by online distributors and platforms.
“Following the operationalisation of the Films and Publications Amendment Act earlier in March, 2022 the FPB as the content regulator with the legitimacy to regulate the creation and distribution of content online, has started a process to review and update its regulatory instruments to fight and curb harmful and prohibited content, including children’s exposure to abusive materials including pornography.
The FPB implores all parents and caregivers to be vigilant regarding what their children watch on their own cellphones, because at times these are the sites that parents may have watched.
“Unlike TV where parents can introduce a pin as a prevention tool, cellphones are a totally different game because once a child goes beyond the minimum-security features put in place by the parent access to all the sites becomes easy.
The FPB is available to assist parents, caregivers, and teachers on practical online safety tips of keeping our children safe online, it said.
Cape Times