One of four Indian teens is victim of online cruelty

McAfee survey finds growing digital divide between Indian teens, parents

Today's teens are quite net savvy; get exposed to the world of Facebooks and Twitters quite early in their lives. But the stark reality is that many of them end of sharing more dangerous information online, many of times accessing porn contrary to their parents’ belief.

According to McAfee’s 'Secret Lives of Teens’ survey, one out of every four teens has been a victim of cruel behaviour online while 35 per cent of the surveyed teens willingly access porn online.

It also says that 40 per cent of the surveyed teens share their home address while only 21 per cent of the parents surveyed believe that they would have actually done so. More than one-third of teens participated in the survey say that they have met their virtual acquaintances in real life while only 17 per cent of the parents say they are aware of this.

“Instead of being nurtured through their formative years, today’s teens are meandering their way through an unrestricted virtual world with disturbing experiences like cyber bullying, befriending unknown strangers, getting into relationships and accessing provocative content,” said Anindita Mishra- McAfee Cybermum India.

“Arming our kids with the information they need and talking even more openly about the risks involved and how to deal with them, is a key agenda of new age parenting,” she added.

The survey is based on a research commissioned by McAfee in seven top Indian cities comprising of a sample size of 757 teenagers and 750 parents.

According to the report, 97 per cent of the surveyed teenagers say they have a social networking account. On an average, they open account in social networking sites at the age of 13.  They spend 86 per cent of their time on Facebook followed by 54 per cent in Twitter.

However, despite being aware of the consequences, they end of sharing their actual home address, mobile numbers and other sensitive information.

About 53 per cent of the surveyed teens say they have accidentally accessed pornography while about 35 per cent of them have willingly access porn/nudity online.

“We commissioned this extensive research exercise to uncover the digital divide that exists between Indian parents and teens today. We hope this study provides Indian parents with some key insights and learning’s on how to protect their children online, said Melanie Duca, Consumer Marketing Director (APAC), McAfee.