Participants of the Be Safe, Feel Safe programme checking out a motorcycle during the programme.
SOME 1,500 schoolchildren took part in the Be Safe, Feel Safe programme under the Brickfields Safe City Local Agenda 21 Programme.
Held on two separate weekdays, the whole-day events were aimed at making students more knowledgeable and skilled in protecting themselves from crimes like scams.
Specifically aimed at primary and secondary school students, it was jointly organised by Rukun Tetangga Brickfields and Malaysian Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF).
“This effort is to enhance the safety of Brickfields for everyone by providing participants with knowledge on how to protect themselves from scammers,” said MCPF exco member SKK Naidu.
“Brickfields does not have serious crime cases, just snatch thefts.
“But, there is a lot of concern on the rising number of scam cases and we want to ensure that children don’t fall prey,” Naidu said.
Schoolchildren in Brickfields listening to the sessions by police on how to avoid getting scammed.
“We are particularly concerned about youngsters sharing personal information and photos that may end up in the wrong hands.
“So this initiative is to equip them with knowledge on what not to do in the event they find themselves in such a situation,” he added.
The four-hour programme conducted by senior police officers taught children about the risk of sharing personal information online, including addresses, phone numbers and school details.
They were also taught to recognise common scam tactics, such as messages that create urgency and require them to reveal personal information or offers that are too good to be true.
Other topics included bullying, gangsterism, sexual harassment and mental health, with experts from Brickfields Police and Kick Start Academy leading the sessions.
Participating schools were SMK Vivekananda, SK St Teresa 1, SJK (C) St Teresa, SK La Salle and SMK La Salle.
Naidu added that a similar programme would be conducted for the visually impaired community.
