When Safer Internet Day (SID) was first launched in February 2004 in Brussels, the European Union contained 15 members, Facebook was a two-day-old website accessible only to Harvard students and the iPhone didn't exist. The expansion of SID in the years since mirrors the expansion of the internet. A commitment to online safety undertaken by just 14 nations in 2004 is now observed annually in about 130 countries. The technological innovations of the past decade, decanting the internet into smartphones and other affordable gadgets, have opened up the worldwide web to virtually every segment of the global population.
The overall effect has been empowering – but the internet's potential for immense good has always been threatened by its exposure to those who seek to do harm – and the dangers have become more apparent as societies have become more dependent on it. The most vulnerable group, the central focus of SID, are the young. How do you vaccinate impressionable minds against the toxic and damaging influences emanating from cyberspace?
There isn't a parent who hasn't pondered this question with deep anxiety. The impact of early exposure to social media on children's psyche, studies show, can be harmful: boys and girls as young as 10 are now painfully aware of how their appearance can be judged online and compete for attention in the virtual world, while becoming detached from the real one. The trouble is that parents who attempt to monitor or curtail children's online activity risk alienating them because they may not fully appreciate the extent to which the young today, born as digital natives, are being moulded by virtual interactions. What parents consider reckless and dangerous in this digital era – excessive sharing of personal information, for instance – tech-savvy children often regard as normal.
The attempts to bridge the generational divide don't obscure the fact it is the young who are most vulnerable to the negative impacts of cyberspace, whether it is through bullying, being manipulated or preyed upon, or being targeted by extremist groups like ISIL, which have now turned their attention to recruiting online. Nor are adults immune; last year the UAE lost nearly Dh4 billion to online crime. This figure will multiply exponentially if those preparing to enter or rise in the workforce are not trained in cybersecurity. To coincide with SID, Google is offering an online security course for children and adults on how to protect themselves. That can only be to the benefit of old and young alike.
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Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
PSL FINAL
Multan Sultans v Peshawar Zalmi
8pm, Thursday
Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Origin
Dan Brown
Doubleday
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What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Summer special
The%C2%A0specs%20
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Like a Fading Shadow
Antonio Muñoz Molina
Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez
Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Last 10 winners of African Footballer of the Year
2006: Didier Drogba (Chelsea and Ivory Coast)
2007: Frederic Kanoute (Sevilla and Mali)
2008: Emmanuel Adebayor (Arsenal and Togo)
2009: Didier Drogba (Chelsea and Ivory Coast)
2010: Samuel Eto’o (Inter Milan and Cameroon)
2011: Yaya Toure (Manchester City and Ivory Coast)
2012: Yaya Toure (Manchester City and Ivory Coast)
2013: Yaya Toure (Manchester City and Ivory Coast)
2014: Yaya Toure (Manchester City and Ivory Coast)
2015: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund and Gabon)
2016: Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City and Algeria)
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
The biog
Name: Gul Raziq
From: Charsadda, Pakistan
Family: Wife and six children
Favourite holes at Al Ghazal: 15 and 8
Golf Handicap: 6
Childhood sport: cricket
