Obligating Abu Dhabi schools to protect students from electronic risks

The Department of Education and Knowledge in Abu Dhabi has obligated schools to protect students from electronic risks, noting that the ability to deal with the data of the digital world is necessary to enable students to participate effectively in education, work affairs and contemporary life.

She stressed that schools have a responsibility to integrate the development of digital skills into every aspect of teaching and learning, while ensuring the safety and security of students while they interact in the digital space.

In detail, the Department of Education and Knowledge in Abu Dhabi has identified basic requirements for schools to protect students from electronic risks, most notably: developing and implementing a digital strategy, integrating the concept of digital security into the teaching and learning processes and the safe use of digital technology, and ensuring that schools invest in developing students’ digital skills and competencies, to enable them to benefit from of learning opportunities resulting from the use of technology, ensuring that schools educate students about responsible and safe access and use of digital environments, and protecting students from digital content and interactions that may be inappropriate or harmful, while ensuring that schools put in place systems And safe, balanced and appropriate mechanisms and procedures to protect its digital security, and adherence to the requirements of the Monitoring and Control Center and Federal Decree Law No. 45 of 2021, regarding the protection of personal data in its collection, processing and storage.

The department indicated that protecting students from digital risks includes protecting them from inappropriate or illegal content that may harm their psychological health, unsafe communication (such as communicating with users who have fake profiles), and monitoring personal behaviors on the Internet that may lead to harm to oneself or others ( such as participating in cyberbullying), in addition to protecting them from fraud and financial risks, such as gambling and phishing.

The department stressed the importance of developing awareness programs for students about the benefits of technology to enhance their awareness of electronic risks, and the impact of digital habits on their security and safety (such as the effect of the duration of use of digital devices). She also stressed the need to establish filtering systems to monitor students’ use of the Internet on school devices, periodically analyze students’ use of the Internet and violations of the electronic network, to identify potential negative trends or problems, and procedures to identify students who develop risky, excessive, or illegal digital habits, such as addiction. Digital or gambling, in addition to mechanisms to enable protection during activities that are conducted virtually, such as disabling student chat.

She said: “Schools must ensure that there is a developmental purpose before allowing students to use the Internet during school hours. Schools must also ask parents to monitor their children’s use of digital devices outside the school campus, and outside school hours, to ensure safe and appropriate digital behavior.” The department expected that schools would comply with the electronic protection requirements for students and implement them fully at the beginning of the next academic year 2025-2026, noting that implementation of this policy began partially during the current academic year 2023-2024.

The department said that failure to comply with this policy will expose the school to legal accountability and penalties applied under the regulations, policies and requirements of the Department of Education and Knowledge, without prejudice to the penalties imposed by Federal Decree Law No. 31 of 2021, promulgating the Crimes and Penal Code and its amendments, or any other relevant law. The Department of Education and Knowledge reserves the right to intervene if the school is found to be violating its obligations.

“Education and knowledge”:

. Failure to comply with procedures to protect students digitally exposes the school to accountability and legal penalties.