“The number of Internet users has been growing day by day. Safety for kids and teens on social media in our country is generally under threat,’’ said Davaasambuu Budzaan, head of the division to protect children from crime at the National Police Agency.

Before 2010, about 20 cyber crimes were registered in Mongolia annually and since then, the number of online crimes in the country has increased significantly, Budzaan said.

“For example, a total of some 300 cyber-related cases, including child sexual abuse through the internet and creation of child pornography, have been registered across Mongolia in the first half of this year,’’ he said.

He urged all parents and relevant officials to reinforce their control over the social media usage of children, including removing strangers from their children’s list of friends on social networking websites.

During the 20-day campaign, relevant officials will give lectures on how to use social media effectively at more than 700 general education schools across the country.

Facebook is the most popular social network among Mongolians.

According to data by the Mongolian government, there are more than 1.5 million Facebook users in the country with a population of some three million.

Almost 97 per cent of the pupils in Ulan Bator, the capital of Mongolia, and some 93 per cent of rural pupils are active Facebook users.

(Xinhua/NAN)