By JADE RUSSELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

jrussell@tribunemedai.net

WITH a week-long Cyber Safety series set to begin on September 15, child advocate Alexandra Maillis-Lynch is warning that stronger safeguards are urgently needed to protect children from harmful video games, websites, and online platforms that exploit and emotionally harm them.

Mrs Maillis-Lynch, founder of the National Society for the Protection of the Children of The Bahamas, said children remain among the most vulnerable to online threats, while parents are often unaware of the dangerous content they can access through group chats and websites.

She recalled that while working at Ranfurly Homes for Children, officials banned youngsters from playing the video game Roblox after learning some users were being exposed to pornographic material.

Cyberbullying, she added, is another growing concern. “If a child is being told every day, you’re ugly, you should die. You know what that does to their brain?” she asked. “As a parent, you would not let your child ever be exposed to that knowingly.”

The Cyber Safety series, hosted by the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in partnership with community groups, runs from September 14 to 21 and will focus on raising awareness among teachers, parents, students, church leaders, coaches, and the wider public.

Workshops will address cyber threats to children, human and sex trafficking, child pornography, sexual exploitation, cyber violence, professional cheating, the misuse of artificial intelligence, financial crimes, and the dark web. Cyber Safety Consulting, a US-based organisation that delivers its Cyber Awareness and Safety Education (CASE) curriculum in schools across America, will lead several sessions.

Rev Dr Fr Peter J Spiro, a Greek Orthodox priest with more than two decades of law enforcement experience, will also speak on human trafficking. He currently works with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s Human Trafficking Unit as a trainer.

Mrs Maillis-Lynch said she hopes the initiative highlights the risks facing both children and adults. She warned that as the internet evolves, children and the elderly are becoming increasingly vulnerable to exploitation.

Partners for the event include Women United, the Bahamas Union of Teachers, Boost Academy, and the Bahamas Christian Council. The Ministry of Education, the US Embassy, the Royal Bahamas Police Force’s Cybercrime Unit, and the Ministry of National Security have also been invited to participate.