Digital shakti was undertaken by CyberPeace Foundation in partnership with Facebook and the National Commission for Women.
In Phase 1 of the project, workshops on Digital Literacy and Online Safety were conducted for women across 6 states in various schools and colleges. We sensitized over 60,000 adolescent girls and women on the various cyber-crime committed against females and also the appropriate course of action to be taken in such cases. Throughout these workshops, many participants spoke about their problems and also felt the need to have more such discussions. Revenge pornography is a very important module in our sessions. The participants are taken through the entire process of content removal (DMCA content take-down), and also other redressal mechanisms including reporting to authorities and within social media platforms. These workshops have been proven essential as not only are women targeted online more than men, it has also been seen that though literacy rates are improving, digital literacy is still not as high as it should be. With the successful completion of phase 1 from June '18, we plan to launch Phase 2 of the project very soon. We will be visiting 12 states and plan to speak to around 1 lakh women.

https://www.facebook.com/DigitalShakti/

• India

• Youth
• Women

Due to the increased dependence on the internet and also technological advancements, it becomes very important to understand the vulnerabilities one may be in when online, and also knowing the rights tools and techniques to safeguard oneself online. The only way to stay safe is through awareness campaigns. This needs to be regular, as the modi operandi of criminals is constantly changing to crack high end security systems that are being developed. Another major reason is the lack of gender inequality in India. Women are still not given equal opportunities, let alone learn in many parts. This project has empowered many women across the states we visited and also given them the much needed confidence to use the internet for both their personal and professional growth.

Through the Digital Shakti campaign, we attempted to bridge the gender divide and also sensitize women how they can make the most of the internet while making sure they are not vulnerable to any attacks. The workshops have proven very effective in promoting the use of the internet and also learn about upcoming trends like IoT, AI, etc.