ChildSafeNet, Jawalakhel, Lalitpur (2026)

26/04/2026

We increasingly rely on AI. But how far should that reliance go?

Let’s take a look at this image.

In one frame, an AI tool confidently labels a toxic mushroom as safe to eat.

In the next, it offers a polite apology. But in the real world, an apology does not undo harm.

It is a stark reminder of how decisions are shaped in environments where speed and confidence can hide dangerous uncertainty.

The illusion of Authority

Children and young people are growing up in a world where AI is always present, responsive, and often seen as authoritative.

When something sounds fluent and assured, it is easy to assume it is correct.

But children are still developing the ability to question, verify, and spot subtle inaccuracies. The real risk is not just misinformation. It is misplaced trust.

And that trust can have serious consequences:

• Health and Safety: medical or nutritional advice taken at face value

• Physical Risk: exposure to harmful challenges or unsafe recommendations

• Emotional Development: distorted views of identity, relationships, and self-worth

Moving Beyond user Responsibility

This is not simply about how users behave. It is about how systems are designed.

If AI is built to sound certain, it must also be built to signal uncertainty, especially when children are involved.

What needs to change?

✅ Safety by Design: wellbeing must be embedded from the outset, not added after harm occurs

✅ Transparent Uncertainty: clear signals of limits should be standard, not optional

✅ Critical Literacy: children need support to question and think, not just access tools

✅ Collective Guardrails: platforms, educators, and parents must work together to create safer environments

AI can be a powerful co-pilot. But children should never be left to navigate it alone.

The true measure of technology is not how intelligent it appears, but how well it protects the rights, safety, and wellbeing of every child.

Illustration: Unidentified Creator (please write the name of the creator, if you know)

26/04/2026

Gaming is not just entertainment anymore. It is a social space, a learning space, and sometimes a risk space.

Gaming itself does not necessarily pose a risk to children; it is the environment around it that can create harm.

The question is not whether children should play games.
It is whether we are doing enough to make that experience safe, balanced, and age-appropriate.

Make Your Child’s Gaming Experience Safe and Healthy

Games can support creativity, teamwork, and problem-solving.

But without guidance, children can face risks such as cyberbullying, exposure to harmful content, manipulation, and excessive use.

ChildSafeNet Gaming Safety Checklist for Parents and Caregivers

✅ Check Game Ratings

Not every game is made for every age. Always review ratings such as IARC, PEGI, and ESRB before allowing access.

✅ Keep Gaming in Shared Spaces

Place devices where the family can see. Visibility creates awareness and reduces hidden risks.

✅ Set “Tech-Free” Time

Gaming should be part of life, not the whole of it. Build routines that include offline play, rest, and family time.

✅ Use Safety and Parental Tools

Use in-built controls to manage screen time, privacy settings, and interactions. But remember, tools support parenting, they do not replace it.

✅ Play Together

Spend time in your child’s digital world. It builds trust and helps you understand what they experience.

✅ Encourage Transparency

Simple practices like keeping doors open while gaming can reduce isolation and increase safety.

✅ Keep Conversations Open

Create a space where children can speak freely. If something goes wrong, they should feel safe to tell you, not afraid.

Check Before You Allow

You can review games through official rating systems:

• IARC: globalratings.com

• PEGI: pegi.info

• ESRB: esrb.org

Why this matters

Many risks do not come from the game itself, but from how platforms are designed and how interactions happen within them.

Children are navigating systems built to maximise engagement.

Expecting them to manage this alone is neither fair nor realistic.

25/04/2026

Most schools today restrict children from carrying phones on campus. At first glance, it appears sensible.

But at ChildSafeNet, we ask: is a blanket ban a genuine safety measure, or a missed opportunity to prepare children for the digital world they already inhabit?

The answer is not easy. It sits at the intersection of protection, participation, and practicality.

The risks are real.

We cannot ignore the concerns many educators and parents face:

❗ Cognitive Disruption:

Constant notifications fragment attention and affect learning

❗ Online Harm:

Cyberbullying, harassment, and exposure to harmful content

❗ Privacy Risks:

Recording or sharing without consent

At the same time, phones in schools play an important role:

• Safety and Reassurance:

A vital link during travel or emergencies

• Access to Learning:

Immediate entry to information and collaborative tools

• Digital Inclusion:

For many children, devices support accessibility and connection

Suggested Balanced Approach

Rather than focusing only on restriction, schools can lead with guided use and accountability:

✅ Clear, age-appropriate rules on when and how phones can be used

✅ Protected learning time through structured phone-free periods

✅ Digital literacy embedded in everyday education

✅ A culture of trust and responsibility, not just control

✅ Strong collaboration with parents and caregivers to guide children

Children are not just users to be controlled. They are individuals to be guided.

The goal is not simply to manage devices.
It is to equip children to navigate digital spaces safely, responsibly, and confidently.

Where do you stand?

Should schools restrict phones, regulate them, or rethink the approach altogether?

Illustration: AI-generated by ChildSafeNet

24/04/2026

Tools, filters, and settings can play a role, but they are only one part of the picture.

What truly makes a difference is active, informed, and empathetic parental engagement.

Four Pillars of Parenting in the Digital Age

✅ Talk, Don’t Dictate

Make digital safety part of everyday conversation. Do not wait for a crisis, and do not limit these conversations to moments when something goes wrong. Make them part of everyday life.

✅ Learn about Children’s World

Parents should explore the apps and platforms their children use. Understainding the digital environment is far more effective than simply blocking access, not to monitor every move, but to better guide and support.

✅ Set and Follow Rules Together

Build boundaries through mutual respect, while listening and adapting as children grow. This reduces resistance and allows rules to evolve over time.

✅ Support, Don’t Punish

Create a space where they can speak openly without fear, where they feel heard, not judged or punished. Children often stay silent because they fear losing access to their devices.

Disrupting the Predator’s Playbook

Predators thrive in the space between a child and their caregiver. They rely on shame, isolation, and the fear that a parent “just will not understand”.

Online risks are closely tied to trust, communication, and the environments we create around children.

Strong, open relationships, and a high-trust environment disrupts this pattern.

A child who feels supported is far harder to isolate, and more likely to speak up.

We are not just preventing exposure to harm. We are addressing the conditions that allow harm to take place.

Empowering Children

At ChildSafeNet, we believe that “protection” should not mean building a wall. It means helping children learn how to navigate the world.

Our goal is to move from exclusion to empowerment, from keeping children off the internet to equipping them with the resilience to thrive within it.

The most effective safeguard is not an app or a feature.
It is a trusted family, present, aware, and willing to listen.

Illustration: ChildSafeNet

23/04/2026

Today, 23 April 2026, is International Girls in ICT Day.

This year’s theme - ‘AI for Development: Girls Shaping the Digital Future’ - comes at a critical juncture. Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant prospect. It is already shaping how children learn, connect, and express themselves. From algorithmic recommendations to automated interactions, AI is actively influencing opportunities, behaviours, and risks.

Why Girls Must Lead the AI Revolution

Girls are not passive users of technology. They are creators, problem-solvers, and leaders. Their meaningful participation in ICT is essential for building digital systems that are not only innovative but also safer and more accountable.

When girls and young women lead in AI and ICT, the impact is profound:

* Challenging Algorithmic Bias:

They identify and dismantle the prejudices often embedded in data and code.

* Safety by Design:

They ensure that dignity, wellbeing, and protection are foundational features, not afterthoughts.

* Lived Experience:

They bring vital perspectives to tackling online abuse, grooming, and exploitation.

* Ethical Advocacy:

They champion rights-based approaches to ensure technology serves humanity.

AI for Development Must Mean AI for Protection

In an era where AI-enabled harms are growing in complexity, exclusion is a risk we cannot afford. Encouraging girls to pursue ICT is about more than career paths - it is about power, participation, and protection.

It is about ensuring that the systems shaping children’s lives reflect their realities and uphold their fundamental rights.

Our Call to Action

We call on governments, schools, families, and technology companies to:

✅ Invest in girls’ participation in ICT and AI education

✅ Dismantle structural barriers, including gender bias and the digital divide

✅ Create safe, enabling pathways for girls to learn and lead without fear of harassment

✅ Embed child rights and safety by design into every digital innovation

A safer digital future will not be built by code alone. It must be designed with intention.

🔗 Read more: https://www.itu.int/women-and-girls/girls-in-ict/international-girls-in-ict-day-2026/overview/

22/04/2026

Tech-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) is an extension of gender-based violence, rooted in gender inequalities, power imbalances, and discrimination.

Technology does not create the violence. It facilitates and amplifies it.

What distinguishes TFGBV from other forms of GBV is how digital systems intensify harm:

1. Scale: Technology enables violence to affect a large number of people simultaneously.

2. Speed: Technology allows violence to occur rapidly, making timely intervention difficult.

3. Anonymity: Technology provides anonymity, making perpetrators harder to identify and hold accountable.

4. Permanence: Technology ensures abusive content remains accessible online indefinitely and can resurface over time.

5. Cross-border Reach: Technology allows violence to transcend geographical boundaries, while protections remain limited.

The consequences are severe.

For many, abuse continued after relationships ended. Monitoring, threats, pressure to share passwords, and the non-consensual sharing of intimate images were used to control, intimidate, and silence.

TFGBV harms mental health, education, social participation, and future opportunities. It isolates young people, damages reputations, and reinforces inequality.

Children and adolescents face heightened risk due to limited power, weak protections, and restricted access to safe reporting and support. For those facing intersecting discrimination, including LGBTQIA+ young people, harm often remains hidden and disclosure can carry serious risks.

Awareness alone is not enough.

We need laws that reflect digital realities, survivor-centred support systems, trained teachers and police, clear and safe reporting pathways for adolescents, and real accountability from technology companies.

Safety must be built into digital platforms by design, not added after harm occurs.

Addressing TFGBV is not only about technical fixes or parental controls. It requires confronting gender inequality, power imbalances, and patriarchy, and fulfilling obligations to protect children and young people.

Illustration: ChildSafeNet

21/04/2026

A recent jury verdict in Los Angeles found Meta and YouTube liable for “addictive” design features, such as infinite scroll and algorithmic recommendations, that ensnared a young user and caused significant mental health harm.

According to a Psychology Today article, design matters.

Children are not only drawn in by how platforms are built. They are also drawn in by what these spaces provide.

• A need to understand who they are

• A need to belong

• A need to be seen

Psychological insights point to a deeper reality. For many children and young people, social media has become central to the process of self-making.

• Exploring Identity:

Children encounter new ideas, values, and ways of living beyond their immediate surroundings.

• Finding Community:

They connect with like-minded peers, often finding support and validation that may be missing offline.

• Generating Visibility:

They share their stories, seek recognition, and build a sense of presence in the world.

This is what makes disengagement so difficult.

For many, logging off does not just mean losing a platform. It can feel like losing a space where their identity is forming and being affirmed.

This is also why simple restrictions often fall short. In some cases, they push children towards more hidden, less safe, or less regulated spaces.

If we are serious about protecting children, we need to move beyond a narrow focus on “addiction”.

✅ Hold platforms accountable for harmful design

✅ Build safer, more inclusive offline environments

✅ Support children in developing identity, confidence, and belonging beyond screens

✅ Listen to children and understand what draws them online in the first place

Because the question is not only why children stay online.

Read More: Why Are We So Dependent on Social Media?, Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/our-new-discontents/202604/why-are-we-so-dependent-on-social-media

Illustration: AI-generated by ChildSafeNet

20/04/2026

91% of identified CSAM victims are pre-pubescent children aged 3 to 13, it points to a pattern of harm that is both deliberate and deeply concerning.

These cases reflect targetted exploitation of young children, often involving abuse within trusted environments, where children have limited ability to recognise, resist, or report what is happening.

The fact that 98% of identified victims are female also tells an important story. It aligns with broader patterns of gendered sexual violence, where girls are disproportionately targeted. But it would be a mistake to read this as a complete picture of victimisation.

Evidence from multiple studies shows that boys who experience sexual abuse are far less likely to be identified in datasets like these. This is not because they are unaffected. It is because their experiences are less likely to be named, disclosed, or recorded.

Several factors contribute to this:

* Stigma and social norms: Expectations around masculinity often discourage boys from speaking about abuse or even recognising themselves as victims.

* Different grooming dynamics: Perpetrators may use tactics that rely on secrecy, normalisation, or manipulation of trust in ways that are harder to detect.

* Lower self-identification: Boys may not interpret what they experience as abuse, especially when it is framed as “consensual”, a “game”, or part of a relationship.

* Systemic blind spots: Reporting mechanisms, awareness campaigns, and even professional responses have historically focused more on girls, leaving gaps in identification and support for boys.

As a result, the data risks reinforcing a partial narrative: that harm is overwhelmingly directed at girls, when in reality it may also be affecting boys in ways that remain largely invisible.

The INHOPE Annual Report 2025 does more than present numbers. It invites a closer look at what lies behind them: who is being seen, who is not, and why.

Read the INHOPE Annual Report 2025: https://ow.ly/5sct50YGo3x

20/04/2026

तपाईँको अनलाइन अनुभव कस्तो छ ? सुरक्षित इन्टरनेटसम्बन्धी UNICEF Nepal को U-Report सर्वेक्षणमा सहभागी भई आफ्नो विचार व्यक्त गर्नुहोस् ।

तपाईँको सहभागिताले सुरक्षित डिजिटल संसार सुनिश्चित गर्न वकालत गर्न सहयोग गर्नेछ ।

त्यसको लागि QR Code स्क्यान गरी भाइबर वा मेसेन्जरमा सर्वप्रथम ONLINE टाइप गरेर U-Report मा पठाउनुहोस् ।

20/04/2026

Save the Date: 23 April 2026 — International Girls in ICT Day

At ChildSafeNet, this day is not just symbolic. It speaks directly to the future we are building.

The 2026 theme, ‘AI for Development: Girls Shaping the Digital Future’, could not be more relevant. Artificial intelligence is rapidly shaping how children learn, interact, and experience the digital world.

From content recommendations to online interactions, AI is already influencing opportunities, behaviours, and risks.

The critical question is this: who is shaping these systems?

If girls are excluded from designing and developing AI, the systems that define children’s digital lives will continue to reflect narrow perspectives, reinforcing bias and overlooking safety.

This is why the theme matters.

When girls and young women are actively engaged in ICT and AI:

✅ They help identify and challenge bias embedded in algorithms.

✅ They contribute to building safer digital environments by design.

✅ They bring essential perspectives to addressing online abuse and exploitation.

✅ They strengthen community awareness, resilience, and digital literacy.

✅ They advocate for ethical, rights-based development of emerging technologies.

In a time when cyberbullying, grooming, and AI-enabled harms are increasing in scale and sophistication, inclusion is not optional. It is fundamental to safety.

AI for development must also mean AI for protection.

Encouraging girls to enter ICT is not only about access to careers. It is about ensuring that the future of technology is shaped by diverse voices, grounded in lived realities, and aligned with the rights and wellbeing of children.

Now is the time to act. Join the movement.

Support girls to shape AI. Advocate for safer systems. Help build a digital future that protects, empowers, and includes every child.

Read more: https://www.itu.int/women-and-girls/girls-in-ict/international-girls-in-ict-day-2026/overview/

19/04/2026

सन् २००९ मा जब फेसबुकले एल्गोरिदममा आधारित फिड सुरु गरेको थियो, त्यतिबेला यसलाई बहिष्कार गर्नुपर्ने आवाजहरू नउठेका होइनन् । पछि ट्वीटर र इन्स्टाग्रामले यही बाटो पछ्याउँदा पनि विरोध भयो, तर ती प्लेटफर्महरूको लोकप्रियता बढ्दै नै गयो ।

पहिले कुन पोस्ट नयाँ छ भन्ने आधारमा सामग्रीहरू देखिन्थे, तर अब कुन पोस्ट कति लोकप्रिय छ भन्ने कुराले प्राथमिकता पाउन थाल्यो । यसले गर्दा प्रयोगकर्ताको फिडमा साथीभाइ, परिवारका सदस्य र उनीहरूका घरपालुवा जनावरका तस्बिरहरू बिस्तारै ओझेलमा पर्न थाले । त्यसको ठाउँ सेलिब्रेटी, चर्चित ब्रान्ड र विभिन्न टपिक पेजहरूका सामग्रीले ओगट्न थाले । यसैले भाइरल, कन्टेन्ट क्रिएटर र इन्फ्लुएन्सर जस्ता नयाँ शब्दहरूलाई जन्म दियो । वास्तवमा यो सामाजिक सञ्जाल (Social Network) को अन्त्य र सामाजिक मिडिया (Social Media) को सुरुवात थियो ।

टिकटकको ‘फर यु’ (For You) फिडलाई आजको संसारमा प्रयोगकर्तालाई व्यस्त राख्नका लागि सबैभन्दा बढी ‘अप्टिमाइज्ड’ गरिएको प्रणाली मानिन्छ । यसले प्रयोगकर्तालाई उनीहरूले के चाहन्छन् भन्ने थाहा पाउनुअघि नै उनीहरूलाई मन पर्ने सामग्री पस्कन थाल्छ ।

एउटा ‘राक्षस’को उदय

एल्गोरिदमले गर्ने सामग्रीको छनोट सधैँ दोष रहीत हुँदैन । सन् २०१६ मा म्यानमारमा देखिएको एउटा डरलाग्दो घटनाले यसको विनाशकारी पक्षलाई उदाङ्गो पारिदियो । त्यहाँ सेनासँग जोडिएका फेसबुक अकाउन्टहरूले रोहिंग्या अल्पसंख्यक समुदाय विरुद्ध घृणा फैलाउन यसको भरपुर प्रयोग गरे । संयुक्त राष्ट्र संघका एक अनुसन्धानकर्ताले फेसबुकको एल्गोरिदमले एउटा यस्तो ‘राक्षस’ (Beast) को रूपमा काम गरेको बताए, जसले ठुलो स्तरमा जातीय नरसंहार (Ethnic Cleansing) लाई बल पुर्‍याउने काम गर्‍यो ।

एल्गोरिदमको मुख्य उद्देश्य प्रयोगकर्तालाई जतिसक्दो धेरै ‘क्लिक’ गर्न बाध्य पार्नु हो । यसैको आडमा उग्रवादी समूह र कट्टरपन्थी विचारधाराहरूले फस्टाउने मौका पाए ।

यस सङ्कटको सामना गर्न अहिले विश्वका अधिकांश देशहरू बालबालिकाका लागि सामाजिक सञ्जालमा प्रतिबन्ध लगाउने बारे सोचिरहेका छन् । अस्ट्रेलियाले गत वर्ष १६ वर्ष मुनिका बालबालिकाका लागि पूर्ण प्रतिबन्ध लगाउने कानुन कार्यान्वयनमा ल्याइसकेको छ । बेलायत, फ्रान्स र अन्य देशहरू पनि यही बाटोमा जान सक्ने सम्भावना छ ।

समाचारः Techpana

https://techpana.com/2026/156233?fbclid=IwdGRjcARRUmdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEeruGNT1HLSnyrCdVqyTQzpJj1kXMEPxYkWE0dRDEaG5Z6OcxJVGza1ucqmdw_aem_iIVm-qU7Lc_zzo7LgL7xYg

ChildSafeNet

26/04/2026

26/04/2026

25/04/2026

24/04/2026

23/04/2026

22/04/2026

21/04/2026

20/04/2026

20/04/2026

20/04/2026

19/04/2026

Address

Telephone

Website

Alerts

Contact The Organization

Shortcuts

Share

Category