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| From left: Philip Ling, Project Manager for Safe Internet, Digi Telecommunications, Mohd Shamil Mohd Yusoff, Head, Outreach & Corporate Communications, Outreach & Capacity Building Division, CyberSecurity Malaysia, Dato' Sabariah Hassan, Secretary General, Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (KPWKM), Dato’ Sri Rohani Abdul Karim, Minister of Women, Family and Community Development (KPWKM), Joachim Rajaram, Head of Communications & Corporate Responsibility, Digi Telecommunications, and Datin PH Wong, Steering Committee member, Childline Malaysia. |
Digi Telecommunications is offering free calls to the 24-hour helplines Talian Nur and Childline 15999 in partnership with the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development Malaysia (KPWKM) and Childline Malaysia.
This initiative is an extension to the CyberSAFE in Schools programme, a programme by CyberSecurity Malaysia in collaboration with the Ministry of Education Malaysia, Childline Malaysia and Digi. It is also in line with Digi’s aim to provide Safe Internet to families and children besides providing them easy access to an alternative support platform to turn to, in the event of an unpleasant online experience.
The Minister of Women, Family and Community Development (KPWKM), Dato’ Sri Rohani Abdul Karim said, “Nowadays, we can see how the Internet has become ubiquitous with more people embracing it as part of their lifestyles. Unfortunately cyber threats are increasing in tandem with the prevalence of the Internet. Hence, we have to take all the necessary precautions to ensure our children’s safety when they are on the Internet. This effort is a fine example of how the public and private sectors can come together and collaborate in addressing key issues that are affecting the nation. We also applaud Digi’s continuous commitment towards safeguarding our children who are susceptible to Internet threats and risks.”
Effective immediately, affected families - especially children, can now make free calls to 15999 Talian Nur and Childline from all Digi prepaid and postpaid numbers. Talian Nur is a hotline link to enable early intervention for victims of domestic violence and natural disasters, while 15999 Childline is a confidential 24-hour helpline for children and young people to seek information, share feelings and get needed help.
According to Philip Ling, Digi’s Project Manager for Safe Internet, Digi has been a strong advocate for child safety and the right of the child to be protected on the Internet. “With the increasing rate of cybercrimes particularly targeting children, we want to make sure that they are adequately protected against possible danger on the net. This includes providing easy access to ways in which they can seek help.
This initiative is an extension to the CyberSAFE in Schools programme, a programme by CyberSecurity Malaysia in collaboration with the Ministry of Education Malaysia, Childline Malaysia and Digi. It is also in line with Digi’s aim to provide Safe Internet to families and children besides providing them easy access to an alternative support platform to turn to, in the event of an unpleasant online experience.
The Minister of Women, Family and Community Development (KPWKM), Dato’ Sri Rohani Abdul Karim said, “Nowadays, we can see how the Internet has become ubiquitous with more people embracing it as part of their lifestyles. Unfortunately cyber threats are increasing in tandem with the prevalence of the Internet. Hence, we have to take all the necessary precautions to ensure our children’s safety when they are on the Internet. This effort is a fine example of how the public and private sectors can come together and collaborate in addressing key issues that are affecting the nation. We also applaud Digi’s continuous commitment towards safeguarding our children who are susceptible to Internet threats and risks.”
Effective immediately, affected families - especially children, can now make free calls to 15999 Talian Nur and Childline from all Digi prepaid and postpaid numbers. Talian Nur is a hotline link to enable early intervention for victims of domestic violence and natural disasters, while 15999 Childline is a confidential 24-hour helpline for children and young people to seek information, share feelings and get needed help.
According to Philip Ling, Digi’s Project Manager for Safe Internet, Digi has been a strong advocate for child safety and the right of the child to be protected on the Internet. “With the increasing rate of cybercrimes particularly targeting children, we want to make sure that they are adequately protected against possible danger on the net. This includes providing easy access to ways in which they can seek help.
"We were inspired to do this by the recent CyberSAFE in Schools survey, which indicated that some children were not aware of the availability of online or phone-in help centres like Childline that can provide them with a safety net for problems related to the Internet. Now, children can easily make calls to get help without worrying about the costs, while the portability of mobile phones offers them greater privacy when discussing their concerns with the trained Childline 15999 call centre operators.”
Datin PH Wong, Steering Committee member of Childline Malaysia said that this initiative is great news for 15999 Childline as in many cases, children are unable to seek help because calls are currently chargeable. “Child helplines are a vital mechanism for countries to listen directly to children giving first hand data on issues that matter to them and are impacting their lives especially on Internet safety. We will continue to advocate for a totally free 24-hour child helpline. We applaud Digi’s commitment to make calls free to 15999 Childline as it will now give children a lifeline to access help anywhere and anytime,” she added.
Datin PH Wong, Steering Committee member of Childline Malaysia said that this initiative is great news for 15999 Childline as in many cases, children are unable to seek help because calls are currently chargeable. “Child helplines are a vital mechanism for countries to listen directly to children giving first hand data on issues that matter to them and are impacting their lives especially on Internet safety. We will continue to advocate for a totally free 24-hour child helpline. We applaud Digi’s commitment to make calls free to 15999 Childline as it will now give children a lifeline to access help anywhere and anytime,” she added.
Childline Malaysia, initiated by the Malaysian Children TV Programme Foundation (MCTF), is a member of Child Helpline International.
Dr Amirudin Abdul Wahab, Chief Executive Officer, CyberSecurity Malaysia said, “The CyberSAFE programme is one of the initiatives developed by CyberSecurity Malaysia to educate and enhance the awareness of the general public on the technological and social issues facing Internet users, particularly on online dangers and cyber threats. In order to ensure the continuation of cyber safety and Internet security awareness as well as educational activities for children, all parties must come together and collaborate.
Dr Amirudin Abdul Wahab, Chief Executive Officer, CyberSecurity Malaysia said, “The CyberSAFE programme is one of the initiatives developed by CyberSecurity Malaysia to educate and enhance the awareness of the general public on the technological and social issues facing Internet users, particularly on online dangers and cyber threats. In order to ensure the continuation of cyber safety and Internet security awareness as well as educational activities for children, all parties must come together and collaborate.
"We foresee that as cyber security incidents increase dramatically each year, children are also being exposed to various cyber threats and may potentially become victims of cybercrimes in Malaysia. We are certainly delighted with the support given by Digi in taking the CyberSAFE programme to the next level. It is indeed an intelligent collaboration that reaches out to children nationwide.”