28 Oct 2008

Web 2.0 users 'warned on content management'

The wellbeing of children could be put at risk by poor content management by web 2.0 users, a child welfare group has said.

According to Childnet International, the new era of shared user generated content (UGC) has created new opportunities for children to access information which they might find distressing.

In advice which might apply to IT users who regularly conduct business work from home, Will Gardner, deputy chief executive of the group, said uploaded content must be clearly labeled and tagged to protect the interests of children.

Youngsters could access uploaded content from the computers of users who use managed IT services, incorporating shared UGC, he suggested.

"The majority of children come across such content by accident so there is a lot more that needs to be done," Mr Gardner noted.

An NSPCC survey recently revealed that three in four children have seen images online which have disturbed them.

Childnet International is a not-for-profit organisation which seeks to protect the safety of youngsters online.