Assessing the Risks


Mobile phone usage has skyrocketed in just one generation. Over 30 countries around the world have exceeded 100 percent cell phone penetration, which means that there are more cell phone accounts than there are people in those countries. (The United States lags somewhat at around 65 percent, according to Informa Telecoms & Media.) But how people of different ages use their mobile phones varies significantly.

Most people over 40 years of age use their mobile phones because of the convenience of being able to make and receive calls anywhere. Younger users consider their cell phones as portable computers and use them to interact, entertain, inform, and create new content in a wide variety of ways. And users are getting ever younger. In the United Kingdom, two-thirds of children aged 8 to 15 own a mobile phone (49 percent of 8- to 11-year-olds and 82 percent of 12- to 15 year-olds), with the sharpest increase in mobile phone ownership now being between the ages of 10 years old (40 percent of kids) and 11 years old (78 percent of kids) according to research by Ofcom. (Office of Communications is the regulator for the UK communications industries.)

What this means for parents is you might have a learning gap that hampers your ability to help protect your children's mobile safety. If you aren't familiar with all the features of your child's phone, have them show and explain all the cool functions to you.

Mobile device risks fall into several categories, including theft, encouragement of inappropriate behavior because of their portable and personal nature, and ways in which predators can use them to stalk or harass.

The High Rate of Mobile Device Theft

The most likely risk you and your child face is that your mobile device gets stolen. In this situation, the actual loss includes the sense of vulnerability that comes with theft, the value of the device itself, plus the value of any information stored on it. This might include the address book (and exposure of everyone in it), calendar information that might include locations and times you'll be away from home, any messages you've stored that can be read, stored personal information, and links to banks with stored passwords. In addition, there is the concern that the thief will try to run up charges on your phone bill, so you should always report theft immediately.

Think About It

Theft is the single biggest concern about mobile devices for parents in England, where this trend has become a huge problem. Mobile phones make up 45 percent of the reported theft on the London Underground, according to British police. Across England, a phone is stolen every 12 seconds, at a cost of more than £390 million ($719 million) a year. (Research by Halifax Home Insurance.)


Human Nature and Mobility

Beyond theft, every hazard discussed in this book regarding the posting of personal information online or becoming too trusting of people you have met only online holds true, whether you're using a desktop computer in your den, a cell phone in the mall, or a laptop in a hotel room. But there are other, special concerns when you go mobile that you have to take into account.

Your children's mobile devices such as cell phones are with them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There is little opportunity for parental oversight. In fact, cell phones are like the paper diaries of yesteryear in that kids guard their privacy aggressively. Kids count their cell phones as status symbols. Parents often endure a considerable amount of pestering by their kids asking for the latest, greatest phone. Consider carefully what features you feel will be appropriate for your child, as the phone they are asking for might have features that potentially expose your child to more risk than you are comfortable with. In addition, remember that not all the protections that are available on home computers are available on cell phones at this time.

Find Out More

Some family phone plans, such as those offered with Disney Mobile phones (http://disneymobile.go.com), offer family monitoring and call control features that parents of younger children might want to consider.


Phones are being brought to market that can record lengthy videos. One unfortunate manifestation of this in England has been children video recording themselves dodging trains on railroad tracks, and tragically, some have been killed. The ability to "star" in a video is giving a new twist to the old problem of one-upmanship that inspires kids to gain prestige by acting out in dangerous ways.

Another issue on the rise is bullying via mobile phones (Figure 15-1). Some kids are quite vicious toward others. Their behavior is being driven by their having in their possession a powerful communication tool with the ability to record video and take pictures, and share them easily. This instant access to communication is removing the "cooling down" time they might need to reconsider rash actions, and there is some evidence to suggest that kids are behaving more spontaneously and venting feelings and emotions more readily, with negative consequences. According to a 2005 report by ECPAT International, we're witnessing a rise in kids bullying others through mobile devices in the United Kingdom and elsewhere in the world. As the U.S. cell phone market catches up, we are seeing this trend expand in the United States as well, without clear preventative measures. The ability to harass victims 24/7 is powerfuland devastating. In some cases, this has driven the victims to commit suicide.

Figure 15-1. Bullying is never okay. Make sure your children aren't bullies, and that they can come to you if they are being bullied.


Mobile PhoneSpecific Dangers

Mobile phones are by far the most ubiquitous mobile device with more than 2 billion users todaynearly three times as many people have mobile devices as have personal computers. A phone is also the mobile device a young person is most likely to carry. Mobile phones enable a selection of functionality for users, but as with all technology, there are some safety considerations in using these functions. Unfortunately, the most publicized safety message about using cellular phones in the United States, New Zealand, Australia, and other countries is that you shouldn't talk while driving your car. The second most hotly discussed safety topic in many countries is whether or not they are linked to cancer. But there are several other safety aspects you should know about.

Predatory contact on cell phones involves different qualities and consequences than those present through a computer, and parents need to understand a fuller range of issues when considering the unique opportunities these provide:

  • Mobile phones are personal devices. There is no big screen in the living room that allows parents to check on their children's activities.

  • They provide 24-hour direct access to a user, which provides unique opportunities for harassment, solicitation by telemarketers, and obscene callers.

  • Young people send hundreds of billions of text messages, and these usually include the phone number of the sender, which makes contacting them easy. The area code provides useful information a predator can use to discover where you live.

  • Text messaging, or SMS (Short Message Service), has risks similar to Internet chat rooms. You don't always know the identity of the person you are texting with, and it could be a total stranger who starts a conversation with you. Anyone can be hiding behind that phone number, especially if it was bought with a prepaid phone plan.

  • Currently cell phones have little or no content filtering mechanisms, so that surfing the Internet might return results that you do not wish to see or expose your children to. This will be changing, however. Both in the United States and abroad, phone service carriers are beginning to provide content filtering features. Ask your carrier if they offer these services. If your carrier hasn't rolled out content filtering yet, ask when it will be available. Remember that you drive the cellular phone companies' business. If enough parents ask for feature-level filtering options, mobile operators will begin providing these services.

  • Most phones sold today have photo and video capabilities that allow you or your children to send or receive images that might or might not be acceptable to you. If your phone is Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) enabled, the photos do not even need to be opened separately. They simply appear when you open the messageand you might be startled by what is sent.

  • Your cell phone might be capable of using location services that allow users to let others see where they are. Keep in mind that a key factor in predation is access. Letting people know where you are must be done with deliberate considerations.



Look Both Ways. Help Protect Your Family on the Internet
Look Both Ways: Help Protect Your Family on the Internet
ISBN: 0735623473
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2004
Pages: 157
Authors: Linda Criddle

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