Internet dangers abound
(From The Japan Times August 21 issue)

インターネット社会の負の側面

    It correctly points out that as Internet-related information and communication networks become more deeply connected with social and economic activities, people need to recognize the negative aspects, and that parents and Internet-based enterprises must work to rectify this situation.

    This is the second time that Japan's annual police report has focused on the Internet — in 1998 it examined high-tech crimes.

    Last year the police investigated a record 3,161 cybercrime cases that included arrests, an increase of more than 50 percent from the previous year. At least 1,408 of those cases were said to be related to Internet auction fraud — almost three times more than in the fiscal 2004.

    Meanwhile, a record 84,173 people sought advice from the police and other organizations concerning Internet-related problems, such as being billed for services they never used. The number of people who experienced such problems had increased nearly five times in half a decade.

    The white paper mentions other threats to Internet users such as spyware, which retrieves information stored in personal computers, and "phishing," a routine in which computer users are guided to false Web sites for the purpose of stealing their personal information such as credit card details.

    It underlines the need to establish a system under which an Internet communications log is kept for a period of time and to improve the technology for electronic data analysis to facilitate investigations of cybercrimes.

    Given the rapid progress of information technology, the possibility of large-scale cyberterrorism that targets infrastructure such as electricity, gas and water utilities, airline services, financial services, public transport and communication facilities cannot be ruled out.

    It is important that the government, business enterprises and citizens are aware of the dangers inherent in the information age.

    The white paper notes the ease with which children can access harmful information posted on the Internet, since nearly half the nation's households have broadband connections. Readily available information includes pornography, advice on committing suicide, bomb-making instructions and advertisements for anti-social activities. Posting obscene images such as child pornography and information on the availability of stimulant drugs are illegal.

    According to a poll of 2,271 junior and senior high school students in Aomori, Tokyo, Shiga, Okayama, Kagawa and Kagoshima prefectures and their 2,196 parents, conducted in November and December 2005 by an NPA study group, 92 percent of the children knew that obscene images could be seen via personal computers or cellphones, and 25 percent of them — 49 percent of male high school students — had viewed such images.

    Eighty-six percent of the children knew of the existence of sites that focus on suicide, and 76 percent knew of Web sites that displayed violent images (although these were not visited as often as obscene Web sites).

    The poll found that children in most families use the Internet without restrictions, and that parents do not seem very concerned about taking concrete measures to protect their children from illegal or harmful information posted on the information superhighway.

    Asked whether they have set any rules concerning their children's use of the Internet, 62.1 percent of the parents said no. Yet more than 70 percent of the parents worry that their children may see obscene images or become victims of Internet fraud.

    As many as 57.7 percent of the parents said they were not aware of the existence of filtering software to block illegal or harmful information. And only 7.7 said they had actually used it.

    The white paper reports that only 31.3 percent of polled shops either recommend or provide filtering software for use with personal computers or cell phones, while 46.9 percent do neither.

    Another poll shows that more than 80 percent of Internet users want providers to exercise more control over content.

    Society must do more to provide Internet users with accurate information on the dangers of the World Wide Web and help them protect themselves. Internet providers and managers of bulletin board systems must cooperate to build a safer society in the age of information.

The Japan Times Weekly: August 26, 2006
(C) All rights reserved

    昨年、警察が摘発したサイバー犯罪は、前年比50%強増の3161件にのぼった。1408件はネットオークション関係で、前年比2.6倍増だった。

    白書はまた、コンピュータの情報を盗む「スパイウェア」、偽のサイトで個人情報を不正入手する「フィシング」などについて警告している。

    このような状況では、ネット通信記録を一定期間保存し、データ分析技術を改善して、サイバー犯罪の捜査に役立てるシステムを作る必要がある。

    また、情報技術の進歩に伴い、電気、ガス、水道、航空、金融、交通、通信サービスをねらった大規模テロが起こりうる。

    現在、国内の家庭の半分がブロードバンド回線を導入しており、子供がネット上の有害情報に接する可能性も高まっている。

    昨年、東京都と青森、滋賀、岡山、香川、鹿児島の各県で中高生を対象に行われた調査によれば、生徒の92%がパソコン、携帯電話でわいせつ画像が見られることを知っており、25%（男子高校生の49%）が同様画像を見たことがあるという。

    生徒の86%が自殺関係のサイト、76%が暴力シーンを含むサイトの存在を知っているが、大部分の親は子供をネット上の違法、有害情報から守ることに無関心だ。

    親の70%以上が、子供がネット上で有害画像を見ることや、ネット詐欺にかかることを心配していながら、62.1%がなんら対策を立てていない。57.7%が有害情報をブロックするフィルタリング・ソフトの存在を知らず、使用しているのはわずか7.7%だった。

    インターネットの危険について、利用者に正確な情報を提供し、危険から守る取り組みが必要だ。プロバイダ、ネット掲示板の管理者は、安全なネット社会を構築するために協力せねばならない。