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FINGERS NEED TO HAVE CHARACTER

Advances in technology have changed the way people communicate. In the past, human interaction was interpersonal, that is face-to-face where words were expressed verbally. Nowadays, more communication methods are using fingers through various mediums and communication tools to express what is in the mind and heart.

Thus, if viewed from a different dimension, it is quite difficult for us to judge not only the authenticity of the views, but also the individuals behind the scenes who provide the views. Without knowledge and skills, we cannot possibly know whether the genuineness of the individual is behind the screen and the keyboard. This raises a question mark; Do we communicate with humans? Or are the posts and replies done by bots? Either way, now, Artificial Intelligence ( Artificial Intelligence) is able to 'create' individuals who do not exist in the realm of reality but have the ability to 'think' almost similar to humans.

Allah SWT said through Surah Al-Mulk Verse 16, " Should you feel secure (not afraid) of God whose center of government is in the sky: the earth will turn over and bury you, then the earth will shake immediately (disappear you under it) ?”

For individuals who move various agendas and propaganda behind the keyboard, they think that by hiding their identity, they can arbitrarily write and share content that is wrong on the religious and legal side. Politeness and morality which are the core of manners in Islam and humanity seem to be marginalized.

Even if the nature of the Internet is borderless, as Muslims, when using the Internet especially on social media platforms, we should display good morals so as not to damage the sanctity of Islam as a result of irresponsible finger actions in producing content and spreading untrue content that can cause harm.

If we observe, the existence of various social media platforms also creates a new 'career' for a few individuals who generate income by being social media influencers and keyboard warriors. The term keyboard warrior refers to a group or individual who is outspoken in criticizing the other party to the point of dismissing morality, manners and rationality and the validity of a fact or event behind the keyboard. In fact, in order to present arguments and objections to an issue or an individual with the intention of causing anxiety and depression, there are keyboard warriors who are willing to create fake accounts. Cyberbullying that goes beyond these limits has a negative impact not only on the targeted individual, but on society in general.

Individuals who tend to bully in cyberspace are seen as wanting attention and appreciation to express their feelings. By typing behind a keyboard, there seems to be a 'thrill' when they gain validation from a like-minded group.

Even sadder, there are those who lose their judgment and ignore manners to the point of insulting God's creation, including touching on the appearance of other individuals without feeling guilty. There are also cyber bullies who are willing to humiliate individuals and their families by displaying ugly pictures that should not be shown to the public. This is a form of harassment and should not be taken lightly.

MCMC statistics show that 1,618 complaints related to cyber bullying have been recorded for the period 1 January 2024 to 9 July 2024. Of this number, the average complaint was received from users of platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp and Telegram. The data shows that for the same period, 856 (53%) complaints were received from women, and 762 (47%) complaints were received from male complainants. This proves that this act of cyber bullying is not aimed at women only as victims.

Cyberbullying includes sexual harassment, threats, intimidation, as well as the misuse of personal information, details or images for the purpose of harassment, and to embarrass or humiliate certain individuals.

Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 prohibits the dissemination of indecent, obscene, false and threatening, or obscene content with the intent to offend, oppress, threaten or harass another person.

Among the factors that have been identified as contributing to cyberbullying are over-sharing of personal information that others do not need to know, excessive Internet browsing time and lack of awareness about Internet usage ethics. In addition, features by social media platform providers that allow an individual not to reveal their true identity to create an account also make it easier for perpetrators to bully online without being recognized.

The Dewan bahasa dictionary defines akhlak as 'Ar' (plural for the word Khuluk) character, conduct, habit. If refined, it covers all aspects of our behavior in cyberspace. The most important moral is to always be humble as it is mentioned in Sura Al-Isra' Verse 7 " And do not walk on the earth with an arrogant attitude, because indeed you will not be able to penetrate the earth, and you will not be able to equal the height of the mountains .”

Have we forgotten why Iblis was cursed by God? Iblis is so arrogant and does not want to prostrate to Prophet Adam AS on the grounds that his creation is better than Prophet Adam AS. How can we prevent ourselves from being proud of God and people in our daily lives? Make a quote from Surah Al-Hujurat Ayat as a guide,

"And if two factions of the believers are at war, then make peace between them; if one of them acts unjustly against the other, then fight the unjust faction until it obeys God's command again; if he obeys again, then make peace between them justly (according to God's law), and act justly (in all matters); Indeed, God loves those who act justly ."

"O people who believe! Avoid most of the assumptions (so that you do not assume the prohibited assumptions) because indeed some of the assumptions are sins; and do not spy or look for people's faults and shame; and don't half of you curse the other half. Does one of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? (If that is the case of swearing) then of course you are disgusted with him. (Therefore, obey the aforementioned prohibitions) and fear Allah; Verily, Allah is Accepting of repentance, and Most Merciful."

This good manners should be our practice and be used as the basis for educating our children to have noble manners. Let the bamboo bend from the bamboo shoot. The effort to inculcate manners and morals in the use of social media needs to start from an early age not only at home, but also at school.

Among MCMC's advocacy initiatives to reduce cyberbullying in Malaysia is through the Klik Dengan Bijak (KDB) program which aims to raise awareness and provide education on positive, productive, and responsible use of the Internet. Throughout the past year, MCMC has delivered talks in schools, Higher Education Institutions, government agencies, Non-Government Organizations and communities with an audience reach of over 500,000 people through the KDB program.

To ensure widespread coverage in rural areas, last year, MCMC also recruited and trained nearly 1,000 ICT volunteers across the country under the Malaysian ICT Volunteers (MIV) initiative to deliver KDB's Internet safety message, as one of the measures to tackle bullying cyber.

A holistic approach is needed to curb cyber bullying. If as a society, we fail to curb this 'silent killer' activity, it can affect morality, harmony and unity among individuals and have a negative impact towards creating a society that respects each other.

The act of hitting and hurting others on social media, without realizing it, can have bad implications for the emotions of the individual involved, and there are even cases that lead to unwanted events such as suicide because the individual who is the victim is unable to deal with the pressure.

Before making any message that oppresses others, stop for a moment and ask yourself "Is what is being said good?". If it doesn't do anyone any good, stop typing anything that might offend others. Maintain morals as a social media user and respect other individuals as we want to be respected.

Finally, on the authority of Abu Hurairah RA, the Prophet SAW said: "Indeed, when a servant utters a word without examining its truth, it will cause him to fall into a deep hell as far as the distance from east to west." (Muttafaqun Alayhi, hadith narrated by Al-Bukhari, No. 6477, Muslim, No. 2988, Ahmad, No. 8567, pronunciation of hadith narrated by Muslim).

Date of Input: 14/10/2024 | Updated: 14/10/2024 | asmunir

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