Melbourne, May 31 (ANI): Australia's high-speed broadband network could be misused for cyber-bullying and other online crimes against children, the government has admitted.

According to Communications Minister Stephen Conroy, there is a dire need to put into effect safeguards that may prevent the Rudd Government's planned 4.7 billion dollars national broadband network to be used in cyber crimes.

The suggestion comes from the first meeting of a government advisory group on protecting children from online bullying and exposure to inappropriate websites.

In the meeting Senator Conroy aid that the Government is planning to take strong action for curbing any kind of cyber safety problems before the conditions turn worse.

"With the development and roll-out of Labor's national broadband scheme, we expect that there will be an increased opportunity for bad behaviour. So it's very important that we try and not wait till the horse has bolted," News.com.au quoted him, as saying.

The Government has set aside 125.8 million dollars for various safety measures in fighting cyber crimes, which includes setting up a national filtering system. (ANI)