On Friday, April 24, during fifth period, we held a social media (SNS) workshop for our Grade 10 students. We invited an officer from the Personal Safety and Juvenile Affairs Unit of the Community Safety Division of Tsurumi Police Station to serve as the lecturer, and he spoke to the students about the proper use of social media and the dangers that can lurk within it.

Social media has become a familiar part of everyday life, but through specific case studies the students learned that using it incorrectly can lead to serious trouble or even crime. In particular, they came to understand more deeply that posting inappropriate photographs or videos may leave material on the internet even after it has been deleted, and that depending on the content, legal responsibility may be incurred.

The officer also explained the dangers of casually meeting someone whom one has met online, and, drawing on past cases, the students learned about the risk of becoming a victim of crime. It was emphasised that information on social media is not necessarily accurate and that it is important to judge it carefully.

The laws concerning child pornography were also addressed, and the students learned that taking, sending, storing, or spreading such images constitutes a serious violation of the law. It was an opportunity for them to deepen their awareness that inappropriate images must never be exchanged, no matter what the relationship between the people involved may be.

The students listened to the talk with a serious attitude from beginning to end. We hope that they will make use of what they learned on this occasion to use social media and the internet safely and appropriately.