SECONDARY 3 student Ekta Kalwani turned 15 a week ago. But her profile on social networking site Friendster says she is 21, single, and interested in making friends.

Ask the bespectacled, pint-sized teen about the fake age, and she shrugs before replying: 'I'm not trying to bluff anyone or make friends with older people.'

She says: 'It was the only way to get a Friendster account. You have to be above 16 to sign up.'

Welcome to the online world of today's youngsters. There are vast areas that are supposed to be off-limits to minors but are not, either because kids like Ekta are adept at jumping over the virtual fences or because spammers and predators actively reach out to them.

The Internet is a treasure-laden world of information and entertainment - one where falsehoods and the truth co-exist, with few clear signposts to tell them apart.

Navigating the highway and its byways has tripped some young minds up, if a recent incident is anything to go by.

Two weeks ago, the case of Singaporean polytechnic lecturer and former lawyer Abdul Basheer Abdul Kader, 28, who fed off terrorist websites and ended up being influenced enough by radical views to want to take up arms, came to light.

Other youths have been sucked into the dark side of the virtual world, with drastic consequences. These range from being part of or victims of cyber-bullying to being addicted to gaming.

Singapore's latest push is for everyone to become more plugged in to the digital domain.

But has enough attention been paid to helping young people navigate the online world?

How can they be taught to discern between the virtual right and wrong, and good and bad? Whose responsibility is it anyway?

Awash with information

THE Internet is to youngsters today what television was to their older siblings.

Around seven in 10 households had access to the World Wide Web at home last year, up from five in 10 in 2000.

Over eight in 10 students aged 10 to 14 use the Internet to communicate, play and learn, according to a recent survey by the Infocomm Development Authority.

Half of those aged 15 to 19 use blogs and podcasts, according to a survey of 1,000 Singaporeans aged 15 to 49 by the Media Development Authority last year.

There are about 120,000 or so blogs by them.

Teens also watch videos on video-sharing site YouTube, make friends on social networking sites Friendster and MySpace, do research through search engine Google and online encyclopaedia Wikipedia and chat with friends on MSN Messenger or Google Talk.

Here, the free-for-all nature of the Net has 'encouraged behaviour that is close to irresponsible in many cases', says Mr Stephen Yeo, an infocomm technology veteran, who heads a new committee to help Government shape new media policy.

Teachers interviewed say youngsters are naive about privacy issues, revealing their innermost feelings on their blogs, not realising that these can be read by anyone.

There are others who use blogs to call attention to themselves, through sensational posts or pictures.

Mr Tan Aik Fong, a teacher for seven years, says there are more cases of students using the Net to bully others.

For instance, they post pictures or videos of someone they do not like, and badmouth them to get the person to do something.

Says Mr Tan: 'They are naive about what is right or wrong, and have a very strange sense of justice.

'As long as someone says something bad about them, they have to take revenge and punish the person.'

This has led to physical danger for some.

In April, a teenager from Hillgrove Secondary School was beaten up by a group of teens, after she ranted on her blog that her classmate 'deserved to die'.

She had been upset with Debra Koh, 14, a schoolmate who had drowned two weeks earlier in Sungei Pandan canal.

Then there is addiction. Boys are usually the ones who get hooked onto gaming and porn sites, at the expense of their schoolwork.

Misinformation is another concern. After all, there is no way to verify what is on the Net.

What is more chilling is the type of information it offers.

Violent fights between youths here have been filmed and uploaded to YouTube. One clip, of eight youths attacking one boy, received 3,000 hits in just a month.

A quick Google search for 'suicide guide' turned up 12 million hits, while one terrorism expert puts the number of terrorist websites at around 5,500, the majority of which are radical Islamist sites.

This is where young people are at risk, says new media lecturer Lim Sun Sun.

The older generation's experience with traditional media allows them to judge what information is of value. For instance, they know broadsheets to be more credible, while tabloids are more sensationalist, she says.

But the young are 'less circumspect' and may believe that most of what is out there is true, says Assistant Professor Lim, who teaches at the National University of Singapore.

'I'm not saying all kids are susceptible. Many are not stupid.

'Still the kinds of information put out on forums, blogs and even videos may give unwarranted advice that they end up taking in.'

The how-to of Net navigation

RULES help to tame chaos in the real world. But it is hard to apply the same principle to the Net, say experts.

Singapore has a list of 100 sites, including pornographic and extremist sites, that it requires the three Internet service providers here to block access to.

But hundreds sprout up each day, together with new ways to bypass censorship, says Mr Yeo.

'Blocking sites would be akin to fighting a losing battle. We need other lines of defence,' he says.

This is where media literacy comes in.

Essentially, this means equipping youngsters with skills to approach what they see online critically, and to discern what is credible from what is not, says Asst Prof Lim, who is also a member of Mr Yeo's committee.

Known as the Internet and Media Advisory Committee, it is advising the Government on initiatives to educate students and the public on media literacy.

Mr Yeo adds that the committee, which has met once since it was started in March, is looking beyond 'preventive' media literacy.

It wants youngsters to know how to exploit the benefits of the World Wide Web.

'They can look for training opportunities online, or even learn how to set up a small business,' he says.

A key player in the media literacy drive will be schools.

From this year, the Education Ministry will provide material to schools to teach Internet safety.

This will be directed at Primary 1 and 2 and Secondary 1 and 2 students first, with material for older students coming later.

Issues will include the proper and responsible use of the Internet, and appropriate responses to situations encountered online.

Older students will also role-play various scenarios to reinforce the lessons learned.

A handful of schools have even come up with their own curriculum.

Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road), for instance, spent $80,000 developing online modules that cover topics such as downloading illegal material, and the dangers of online pornography and chatroom predators.

Who should lead the charge?

EDUCATORS here want parents and community groups in on the charge to spread media literacy.

This is how it is in other countries, they point out.

The United States has the Centre for Media Literacy (www.medialit.org) which provides a curriculum for schools and also trains teachers.

Three years ago, the European Commission co-funded a two-year project on media literacy.

Known as the European Centre for Media Literacy, its website now contains resources for parents and teachers, such as articles and links to useful websites on the subject.

Volunteer welfare organisation Touch Community Services has come on board this drive, with workshops for 260,000 students in 200 schools over the last six years.

These efforts aside, parents have to make sure their children use the Internet safely at home, says ACS (Barker Road) principal Ng Eng Chin.

'Basic values come from the family. We have lessons and we do what we can, but if parents are not there to enforce it, then the lessons fade away.'

To that end, the Media Development Authority is putting much emphasis on media literacy for the general public, including parents.

Last year, some 140,000 students, parents and teachers attended its 'cyber-wellness' programmes.

It is also supporting talks and workshops for parents, by community groups like Touch, Fei Yue Community Services, and computer training school ACP Computer.

Mr Yeo, who has two children aged 13 and 6, suggests that parents can start implementing Internet safety simply by setting rules on when youngsters can go online.

'For instance, wireless access in my home is password-protected, so I always know when the children are using the Internet.

'And we only let them use the computer in spaces where we can watch over them, like the living room and study.

Getting older folk on board will be a challenge, says civil servant Charles Lim, a member of the Advisory Council on the Impact of New Media on Society.

This group, formed in March as well, is studying issues ranging from the convergence of traditional and new media, to the Internet's impact on the young.

Says Mr Lim, a father of three aged 15, 16, and 21: 'Kids these days are so tech-savvy that they will always be one step ahead.

'In my case, I learnt about YouTube and blogging from my own children.'

But Asst Prof Lim urges parents not to be daunted by the rapidly changing technology.

'They have a duty to keep abreast of developments.

'The worst thing to do is to say 'I don't understand and I give up'. They should keep abreast so they can act in a supervisory manner.'