Keeping Children Safe Online – Rotary + NCA

The UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA)’s Child Exploitation Online Protection (CEOP) Command conducted a workshop in Pune on Saturday 14 February in association with the Rotary Club of Pune Gandhi Bhavan and was attended by Rotary International President Elect K.R Ravindran , Padma Bhshan Dr S.B Mujumdar, the Deputy Head of Mission of the British Deputy High Commission in Mumbai, Mr Colin Wells, President, Rotary Club of Pune Gandhi Bhavan Mr Atul Joshi, and leading advocate and chevening scholar Ms Vaishali Bhagwat.

While Vaishali was in UK on a chevening scholarship on Cyber defense, it was discussed with the NCA whether such programs could be conducted in Pune . Vaishali took efforts to mobilze the team at Rotary Club of Pune Gandhi Bhavan to conduct the program in Pune as the said trainijng for parents , teachers and caregivers was not only relevant but also urgent.

The aim of the workshop was to share knowledge and raise awareness of some of the emerging trends and key issues surrounding child sexual exploitation. The global threat of online crime – particularly in the area of internet-enabled child sexual exploitation needs to be addressed urgently.

The program is designed to empower children and young people in India to better protect themselves from a number of risks in both online and offline, including sexual exploitation and abuse.

This workshop also aimed to help start a more in depth conversation about online behaviours in India, help to break down barriers between adults and children in regards to the online world and how to report if something goes wrong online and ultimately help safeguard more children across India.