Online Prank, Offline Nightmare
""THE suspect is a male Singaporean student, below 16 years of age, and is believed to have operated alone," SPF added.
The student is assisting the police with investigations for the offence...which carries a punishment of a fine not exceeding S$50,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or to both."
-------
While most of Singapore waited with bated breath on Wednesday night (March 18th) for news on founding PM Lee Kuan Yew's latest health condition, in the digital sphere, a seemingly legitimate (but in reality, doctored) PMO statement about Mr. Lee was spreading like wildfire, later even picked up and reported by international news outlets, such as CNN, and CCTV, which subsequently had to issue apologetic retractions.
I received a picture of this doctored PMO statement on WhatsApp that very Wednesday night. Alerted by vigilant friends, however, I waited for official news to break as it did surely just an hour later, about the fraudulent nature of this alleged PMO statement, which looked identical to all other statements issued by the Prime Minister's Office (except for the careless 'Mrs' when referring to Lee).
My immediate reaction was one of disgust, of reprehension, and of vindictiveness, wishing swift and firm justice upon the cruel-minded perpetrator.
However, when this news report broke, about the identity of the suspect-- a minor below 16 years of age-- I was thrown into a moral dilemma.
The following thoughts ensued:
1. Barely 16?!! And I had thought it might have been a long-time political opponent (at least in ideology to LKY). Instead, here was this young boy, who never lived a day under Mr. Lee while he was PM of Singapore, going to the trouble of doctoring such a serious statement and spreading it online, pretending to be the Prime Minister's Office?
I wonder, what instigated him-- a youth who belonged more to the world of Justin Bieber, Instagram and K-Pop, than to the grave mucky world of politics-- to do such a thing? Bear in mind, time and effort were taken in the doctoring to make it look nearly identical, and had it not been for the careless 'Mrs' typo (which was perhaps the only thing that hinted of his youth), the wording was otherwise formal and grave, as were all the other legitimate PMO statements.
I wonder, WHY did he do this?
2. And I wonder now, did he do so fully realising the consequences of what he was doing?
3. We didn't time this, but it is surely timely that Halogen will be having our Halogen Think Tank for Educators session this Thursday night to discuss exactly this:
Leadership in A Digital Age
About what it means-- for students, educators and each of us with a digital footprint alike-- to wield influence online, and the responsibility that comes with it.
I wonder, if anyone had told this young man that his actions online-- even if merely a childish bored prank on his part-- had real-world consequences offline.
It is a sombre note indeed as we look forward to beginning Term 2 on Monday, but it is also a timely reminder to all of us who interact with youth daily, that literally, their future and their lives may hinge on us teaching them even that which we are learning 'on the job', that every action and every word uttered online or offline, has real-world repercussions. This is a heartbreaking case-in-point.
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/student-assisting-police/1729264.html
