The government is concerned about how students are getting involved into cyberspace crimes and spending more and more time exchanging mobile e-mail and applications. In fact, there are lots of negative effects of cell phone overuse.
In Japan parents give cell phones to their children and don’t give it enough thought, and the cost of the toy is getting more expensive.
So the new recommendations of the educational reform panel were approved this week by Prime Minister’s administration. The educational panel asks Japanese iPod and iPhone developers to make phones only for talking and GPS navigation to ensure a child’s safety.
Almost all cell phones in Japan are offering 3G high-speed Internet access, so accessing it is not a problem at all. The educational panel said to filter programs in a proper way to protect children.
Some teens are spending long hours every night on e-mail, interacting with their friends. The amazing thing is that if a child doesn’t respond to e-mail within 30 minutes, he gets targeted and other schoolmates pick him on.
Other youngsters may become victims of I-net crimes. For instance, a child sends in profile snapshots for some Web site and ends up getting threatened for money.
Parents usually rely on cell phones so that to keep in touch with children when they commute long distances to schools. Cell phone fees per child are usually paid for about $39 or 4,000 yen a month.
Compared to other industrialized nations, Japan has a relatively low crime rate, but nation is still concerned about serious Internet crimes.
Cell MAD
