WITH equal enthusiasm, large groups of students and retirees gathered at several locations in the Corporate Area and Portmore for lessons in staying safe while using the Internet on Tuesday — observed internationally as Safer Internet Day.

Telecommunications provider, LIME, in what has now become a tradition, joined the global movement to spearhead local activities to raise awareness among more young persons and, for the first time, the elderly.

LIME employees volunteered to deliver the message to students at the Holy Trinity High School and St Aloysius Primary in Kingston, and Greater Portmore Primary in St Catherine.

Members of the National Council for Senior Citizens were equipped to navigate the Internet more safely following a presentation by LIME’s cyber security team at the Council’s offices on West King’s House Road in St Andrew.

“The age groups were clearly different; however, their interests were the same. All wanted to know how best to stay safe online and avoid the pitfalls others have experienced. As a responsible provider of Web-enabled products and services, it is our duty to share the knowledge and empower them,” said Errol Miller, executive chairman of the LIME Foundation.

LIME said there was strong feedback from students who spoke about increasing incidents of ‘cyber-bullying’ and inappropriate content becoming more readily available and accessible online. However, just over half were confident that they were equipped to deal with online negativity.

The percentage was less for the senior citizens who also received an ‘eye-opener’ when LIME regional IT security officer Michael Sutherland, told them that, “You may very well be ‘on the Internet’ even if you’ve never opened a browser or gone online in your life.” That, he said, is because of the prevalence of smartphones and other photo capture devices available to others who take their photos and upload the images, often without the seniors’ consent.

Both groups were urged to ask questions about where the photos they take may end up before they consent to being in the picture.

Sutherland advised the seniors about using mobile devices and operating systems equipped with location services that may cause the user’s every move to be tracked by others. “These services should only be turned on when absolutely necessary in order to reduce personal security risks. Additionally, it can be dangerous to give too much detail about your interests and hobbies to online forums and on social media sites where many of the people who view it are unknown to you and may have ulterior motives.”

He also cautioned participants to avoid suspicious websites with free offers that are too good to be true, as most are equipped with dubious programmes designed to steal the user’s personal information.

Sutherland also challenged participants to play their part in creating a safer Internet by respecting the privacy of others and avoid the posting of inappropriate or offensive content. Once these basic principles are observed, the IT expert said users would be on their way to establishing a positive ‘digital footprint’ while exploring the vast wealth of knowledge the Internet has to offer.

The LIME Foundation presented a laptop computer to the St Aloysius Primary School’s computer lab at the end of the day’s activities.

Since 2012, LIME has teamed up with Internet activists, educators and parents around the globe have been gathering each February to celebrate Safer Internet Day to promote responsible behaviour online, especially among children.