Speaking of the younger generation…

A US study in the spring of 2012 confirmed the continued rise in cell phone ownership among minors. The percentage of high school students with cell phones, 85 percent, is not surprising, although finding almost the same percentage of ownership (83.5 percent) for middle schoolers is. The numbers continue to surprise as we go down a few grades, with fifth graders at 39 percent, fourth graders at 26.5 percent, and third graders at 19 percent. Third graders are usually nine years old; thus the study's findings show that one in five nine year olds carries a cell phone (http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57411576-93/one-fifth-of-third-graders-own-cell-phones/). This percentage will have even more meaning as we look at the corresponding risks children face due to mobile devices.

Cell phone ownership among the under-10 crowd in the UK is even higher than in the US with 33 percent owning a cell phone. One in 10 children under the age of 10 years owns an iPhone. Of...