Bengaluru: Karnataka, which boasts of being the information technology capital of India, recorded a shocking 1,340 percent increase in the number of cybercrimes that exclusively targeted children in 2020 over the previous year.
According to data from the National Crime Records Bureau, 144 cybercrimes against children were reported in 2020 in Karnataka, as against just 10 in 2019. Most cases were related to publishing or transmitting material depicting children in sexually explicit acts. Over 120 cases related to cyber pornography involving children.
The NCRB data reveals that Karnataka is only next to Maharashtra (207) and Uttar Pradesh (197) and is followed by Kerala (126), and Odisha (71), which make up the top five states with the highest number of cybercrimes targeting children. However, the difference is that while Maharashtra and UP recorded an increase of 195.71 per cent and 101.02 per cent, in Karnataka it crossed the 4-digit mark.
According to experts, the whopping rise in cases can be attributed to the pandemic-induced lockdowns and restrictions that forced people to remain indoors, providing them more opportunities to take to criminal activities in the cyber domain.
Experts also attributed the rise to increased exposure to the internet among children due to online classes.
Nagasimha G Rao, Director, Child Rights Trust, was quoted in the media as saying that most of the cybercrimes targeting children go unreported as parents fear social stigma.
“I have come across scores of cases where parents have forced their children to remove social media applications due to unpleasant experiences. It is alarming that even children as young as eight years old are becoming victims of cybercrimes. Some parents are also the reason for this, as they themselves post their children’s pictures on social media just to garner attention,” he said. Rao said parents, teachers, and the government must make a collaborative effort to save children from cybercrimes.
