Mobile internet access for children 'to be reviewed'

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Mobile internet access for children 'to be reviewed'

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By Editorial Team (Monday, 21st January 2008)

A code aimed at protecting children using 3G mobile phones to use the internet is to be reviewed, it was reported in the Times.

In 2004, a voluntary code was signed by mobile phone providers such as Orange, O2 and Vodafone which agreed to offer parents a filter to block access to certain sites.

However, the Times reports that the Home Office has received complaints from charities, which could result in new rules for service providers.

Secretary for the Children's Charities' Coalition for Internet Safety (CHIS) John Carr told the Times: "We have done our own informal studies in some mobile phone shops, where some shop assistants do no know elementary stuff about internet safety."

Ofcom's spokesperson that it was working with CHIS on the issue and that a report would be released later in the year.

A new study has also warned that using mobile phones late at night, seen as a particular trend among young people, can delay sleep and lead to lack of concentration or personality changes.

However, the Mobile Manufacturers Forum has said that the results of the study, published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Progress, were "inconclusive".