Growing up in the 1970s, we were engrained with the Green Cross Code for road safety, so much so, I can still remember the mantra from the TV. For those fortunate enough to be too young to have any idea what I’m talking about, well… you really missed something, because the effect was remarkable. It became a buzzword for millions. I would like to think it also saved lives along the way.
Just like that safety campaign, we now have an opportunity to encode the DNA of our emerging generations in a socio-techno culture of Information Security. But can it work?
I’m not sure when exactly, but I noted with eventual concern the ability my three-old has to grasp the use of internet-connected technology ahead of many non-technical or social skills. As I looked into this more and more, I saw a pattern of behaviours emerging: that he has a priority to use a screen-based device ahead of a ball or traditional children’s toys. As a parent, I have to hold my hand up and state emphatically ‘mea culpa’. I look around when out in the shopping mall, the park or public transport and I see the same thing, a generation of technology-savvy children with sometimes addiction-type behaviours when using devices such as smartphones, tablets etc. Oh, and if you disagree with the word ‘addiction’, then try removing the device and listen to the music!
So, have we exposed our children to risk our parents would never have fathomed? Well, let’s look at the facts. Smartphones, tablets and pervasive access to the internet is a relatively new phenomenon, even by our standards. If I were to use the analogy of aircraft and air travel safety, I can plainly see the safety considerations were an afterthought. Similarly, cars were around a long time before legislation enforced the introduction of seat belts.
Can’t we just use technology to resolve this?
Let’s look at the dynamics of this for one moment – at that juncture, I believe the analogies mentioned previously grow threadbare. Any device that can access the internet (or, just as importantly, be accessed from the internet) is exposed to the risk of the actors and use case examples we see in the media on a daily basis. I do not believe technology will truly overcome a human problem. If I look at the education systems of the modern world, there is a common thread of learning mechanisms for the various disciplines, language, numerology, science etc. Is it a big ask to use these trusted vehicles of education to align a code of principles of ‘Online Safety for the Community’? It has to start somewhere – why not here?
How long will it take to see if this approach has worked?
The proof is in the pudding; might it take a generation to bear fruition? Can you imagine my three-year-old, having come through an education system that engrains an Online Safety program in school curriculum, starting a job as a school leaver or graduate where the principles of Online Safety are second nature? Would that benefit the enterprise as a whole?
Surely we have other options?
Having been working in ICT for almost 20 years and information security for nigh on 14 years of those, I am at pains to come up with alternatives. However, I would be the first to listen to these, should they indeed surface, as I believe it will stimulate constructive and healthy discussion.
Should we also reboot our safe cross code?
Looking at a new generation of teens and early adults, and how attentive they are to their smartphones as they walk, my attention is drawn to the walk lanes that appeared in North East Asia in 2014. There are ‘smartphone’ walking lanes and ‘smartphone-forbidden’ walking lanes. Does this address the issue of walking while not paying attention to the surroundings or is it a symptom? Do we need to reboot the green cross code? In fact, the safe walk code? And is Corporate Responsibility a vehicle to achieve this?
Happily, many global organisations are now taking their Corporate Responsibility practice very seriously and leveraging the workforce to engage with schools, delivering Online Safety workshops and presentations. To use the Green Cross Code analogy, it’s a step in the right direction.
Symantec in action: Safer Internet Day 2015: Symantec Volunteers Deliver Online Safety Workshops to Students