THE GIRL-CHILD SECURITY IN THE DIGITAL WORLD

In recent times, one can hardly do anything without making use of the whole or part of digital gadgets or an aspect of the digital world as digital technology has modified nearly every aspect of the modern life; ranging from communication, travel, work, shopping, entertainment and so on. This is because these areas amongst many others have been greatly enhanced and transformed in recent times by digital technology. Following this development and enhancements, one can rarely find and area of life or field, an electronic device or piece of machinery that does not need or consolidate digital technology in some way.

The digital world is the availability and use of digital tools to communicate, work or be worked for or render or receive services on the internet, digital devices, smart devices and other technologies. According to Dr. Jörn Lengsfeld, the term “digital world” refers to the totality of circumstances that characterize the living conditions in the digital age, which will be significantly shaped by a multitude of digital technologies. It emphasizes that the living conditions of humans in the digital information age will be shaped by digital technologies in an overriding and comprehensive way. The concept of a “digital world” is based on the expectation that the systems and structures that shape the world and life on earth will not only be permeated by digital technologies, but that they will be dominated by them.

Digital technology means that devices can be more compact, faster, lighter, and more versatile, bringing about efficiency, ease and speed. The digital world brings about the possibility of huge amounts of knowledge to be stored locally or remotely and moved around virtually immediately. Even the term “information” has expanded to include media such as photos, audio, and video, and no longer refers to just words and numbers.

Among the most prominent importance of the digital world includes Social Connectivity as digital technology makes it easy for one to stay in touch with friends, family, and work remotely, even if you are in another part of the world, ease and speed of communication as it facilitates the transfer of large amounts of information across the web almost instantaneously, making it possible to gush video and audio in real-time, send large data files, and access data from virtually anywhere in the world unlike the traditional media that generally takes much time. Versatile and flexible working practices, learning opportunities making it possible and easy for anybody with access to the internet to instantly access a huge proportion of the world’s knowledge over the web.

From the above listed, it is evident that the digital world is beneficial and of great importance in our today kind of world, however numerous the importance, the digital world is faced with challenges that tend to cancel these benefits, standing tall and top amongst others is the security challenge.

Along with the substantial opportunities the digital age brings, come a diverse range of risks and harms. Digital technologies have increased the scale of child sexual abuse and exploitation. Child sex offenders have increased access to children through unprotected social media profiles and online gaming forums. Technological advances have allowed individual offenders and trafficking rings to evade detection through encrypted platforms and the creation of false identities, and have enabled them to pursue multiple victims at the same time.

Girls are not only at risk from adult exploitation; children can also obtain sexual or intimate photos of a peer and share them with or without the individual’s consent. Digital advances have meant that bullying is no longer left at the school gates; cyberbullying is a new method for bullies to hurt and humiliate their victims with the click of a button. Words and images posted online that are designed to cause harm are also difficult to delete, increasing the risk of re-victimisation.

However, following how important and inevitable roles the digital technology play in our present world, the following precautions are suggested for the safety of the girl child in the digital space:

Firstly, the government and relevant authorities should make and enforce policies that secures the use of the digital space.

Secondly, one must ensure the use of best cybersecurity practices. This can be achieved by getting braced with relevant and updated contents to get knowledgeable on cybersecurity to avoid data breaches or hacks.

Also, it is advised to buy and install only genuine and trusted softwares and applications. Also, avoid installing software patches immediately after vendors release them. In addition, do not disable application security features in a bid to make work go faster or easier, downloading unauthorized applications, using personal devices for work purposes without security precautions, entering personal and sensitive information over a public Wi-Fi system, leaving oneself vulnerable to identity theft, malware intrusions, or worse.

Furthermore, avoid plugging an unauthorized and unsafe USB storage disk into a personal or work computer/device.

In addition, activating the multi-factor authentication and not sharing email password with colleagues or friends and family can also help in protecting the girl-child use of the digital space.

follwing the above tips would really help keep the girl-child secured, hence promote the presence, usage and level of the girl-child in the digital space.