- Singapore, 17 November 2007 – On the first day of the much awaited December school holidays, some 200 parents, educators and youngsters gathered at 1 Marina Boulevard for an insightful seminar which aims to address current Internet safety and security issues. The seminar, jointly organised by the Honour Intellectual Property (HIP) Alliance, IPOS’ lead public awareness initiative and the Internet Industry Association of Singapore (IIAS), sponsored by Microsoft Singapore, was graced by Associate Professor Ho Peng Kee, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Law and Ministry of Home Affairs.
- The ever-changing cyberspace and advent of technology has resulted in parents having to play the game of catch up. Addressing the attendees, Associate Professor Ho said, “Our youths need guiding beacons to steer them in the right directions when they encounter grey issues. As a parent or educator, you can be the one to guide them along this path, offering guidelines and tips. Therefore, it is pertinent for us to be equipped with the knowledge of some basic principles so that we can all be a cyber savvy parent.”
- Echoing Associate Professor Ho’s sentiments is Ms Liew Woon Yin, Director-General of IPOS as she highlights the challenges and provides advice on cyberspace ethics. Ms Liew cautioned, “Having Internet access does not give anyone the right to illegally share or distribute copyrighted material. Often, no one pauses to consider whether such action is right or permissible. Just because there are no physical walls to stop you does not make it right to download songs or movies without permission from the content owners.”
- That is why earlier in April this year, the HIP Alliance embarked on its annual public awareness campaign targeting online piracy and this seminar is an extension of the campaign.
- Since then, IIAS has already pledged its support for this seminar. Mr Anton Ravindran, Chairman of IIAS said, “Rather than duplicating efforts, both IIAS and the HIP Alliance sees great synergy in aligning our activities, starting with a public seminar to educate about online security and child protection. The result we hope to achieve is a greater awareness and respect for creativity, innovation and IP.”
- Some of the topics covered at the seminar include:
- Internet safety and security
- Basic Copyright 101
- New modes of copyright content distribution
- eCommerce security
- Other Internet risks and threats
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For media enquiry, please contact:
Angelia Chia
Senior Executive, Public Outreach Department, IPOS
DID: +65 6331 6572
Hp: +65 9763 0452
Email: angelia_chia@ipos.gov.sg
Andrew Peters
Secretariat, IIAS
Hp: +65 9451 9012
Email: andrew@thepacificwest.com
ABOUT IPOS
The Intellectual Property Office of Singapore or IPOS is the lead government agency that formulates and regulates Intellectual Property (IP) laws, promotes IP awareness and provides the infrastructure to facilitate the greater development of IP in Singapore. With IP fast becoming a critical resource in today’s new economy, IPOS’ vision is to foster a creative Singapore where ideas and intellectual efforts are valued, developed and exploited. Formerly known as the Registry of Trade Marks and Patents, IPOS was established as a statutory board of the Ministry of Law on 1 April 2001. More information on IPOS can be found on www.ipos.gov.sg.
ABOUT THE INTERNET INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION OF SINGAPORE
The Internet Industry Association of Singapore (IIAS) is an independent association that aims to represent the views and concerns of the Internet industry, provide advocacy on a range of business and regulatory issues, reinforce security awareness and initiatives to enhance access, equity, reliability and growth of the Internet medium in Singapore, as well as facilitate networking among member organizations. IIAS is a member of the International Internet Industry Alliance (IIIA).
ABOUT HIP ALLIANCE
HIP stands for Honour Intellectual Property. It is IPOS’ key educational initiative to encourage innovation and creativity in Singapore, with strong support from the private sector, public sector and industry associations. HIP aims to promote a positive attitude towards IP and encourages a Pro-IP lifestyle for everyone to ‘Be Creative, Be Original, and Be HIP’. With support from the HIP Alliance members, IPOS intends to motivate the Singapore community to join together to ‘Say No to Piracy’ and support legitimate businesses that create legitimate products and services to make Singapore an IP safe country. For more information, please visit www.hipfriends.org.sg.