Child Rights and You (CRY) launches the nationwide ‘TING TONG’ campaign to promote safe online behavior and digital resilience for children in India
OdishaPlus Bureau
With more than 113 million children below the age of 18 using internet in India, concerns over their safety in digital spaces are growing. Against this backdrop, Child Rights and You (CRY), a major child rights organisation founded in 1979 by Rippan Kapur, has launched its nationwide ‘TING TONG’ campaign to promote safer online behaviour and strengthen digital resilience among children and adolescents.
Children are increasingly using the internet for education, entertainment, social interaction and self-expression. However, greater digital participation has also exposed them to risks such as cyberbullying, online grooming, image-based abuse, misinformation, privacy violations and online exploitation.
Children below 18 account for around 14 per cent of India’s overall internet user population. Among children aged 13 to 16, 65.3 per cent have access to a mobile device, 37.8 per cent actively use the internet and 21.3 per cent use social media, according to data cited by CRY.
Digital access is higher in metropolitan areas, where 73.1 per cent of children have mobile access and 49.3 per cent use the internet, compared with 64.2 per cent and 33.3 per cent, respectively, in less-developed villages.
Launched on Wednesday, the ‘TING TONG’ campaign draws on the familiar sound of an online notification as a simple reminder for children to pause and think before clicking a link, accepting a friend request, sharing a photograph, forwarding information or trusting unfamiliar content.
“Children today are growing up in two worlds – the physical and the digital. Just as we work to make our homes, schools and neighbourhoods safe, we must also ensure that the digital spaces children inhabit are safe, inclusive and respectful of their rights,” said Puja Marwaha, CEO, CRY.
She emphasised that online safety should be viewed as a child protection issue, rather than merely a matter of technology or digital hygiene.
According to CRY, protecting children online requires collective action involving families, schools, communities, governments, technology companies, the media and civil society organisations.
The campaign will focus on raising awareness and building digital resilience among children and adolescents. It will also seek to integrate online safety into school- and community-based child protection initiatives, provide age-appropriate information and strengthen pathways for children to seek help when they encounter online risks.
CRY said the campaign would also contribute to strengthening public discourse and policy advocacy on child online safety.
The initiative comes amid growing concerns over cybercrimes involving children. NCRB data cited by CRY shows that India recorded more than one lakh cybercrime cases in 2024, while reported cybercrime cases against children have increased substantially since 2017. CRY also highlighted a sharp rise in offences involving Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), along with cyber blackmail, harassment and cyberbullying.