Sex sites big hit among students

About 34 percent of middle and high school students willing to meet strangers they befriend online, Education Ministry survey shows
By Tamar Trabelsi-Hadad

About 38 percent of middle and high school students visit sex and gambling sites on the Internet, with a similar number saying they would agree to meet someone they befriended online, an Education Ministry survey of 1,245 students shows.

About 17 percent of respondents said they rarely visit such sites, but 12 percent said they visit the sites on a daily basis.

About 34 percent of poll respondents said they are willing to meet strangers they have chatted with on the Internet, while 31 percent said they chat with strangers once a week.

About 21 percent said that in some instances they feel the urge to complain to the authorities regarding harassment on the Internet.

More Jewish students connected to the Net

According to the survey, 89.6 percent of male students surf the web, as opposed to 79.1 percent of female students.

Also, male students use school computers an average of 5.5 hours a week, while female students use the computers only 3 hours a week.

The survey also found a major difference between the Internet surfing habits of Arab and Jewish students -about 89.5 percent of Jewish students are connected to the Internet, as opposed to only 66.2 percent of Arab students.

In addition, the survey showed 55 percent of students suffer from head, neck, and back aches after using the computer.

The survey was conducted in the framework of the Education Ministry’s “Safe Surfing on the Internet” program, which was launched in an effort to raise awareness among teens regarding the dangers associated with Internet use.