Students attend a summer computer programming course in Changzhou, Jiangsu province, in 2019. (WANG QIMING / FOR CHINA DAILY)

BEIJING - The number of underage internet users in China hit 191 million in 2021, leading to an internet penetration rate of 96.8 percent among Chinese minors, according to a report released on Wednesday.

The report, jointly issued by the Chinese Communist Youth League Central Committee and the China Internet Network Information Center, found that the gap in internet penetration rate of the group between urban and rural areas was basically bridged in 2021.

China's cyber security has seen continuing improvement, with the proportion of cyber security incidents involving minors decreased compared with 2020, according to the report, which also added that video platforms have become an important source of information for minors.

READ MORE: China strives to protect underage internet users

The report covers students from primary, junior high, senior high, and secondary vocational schools in 31 provincial-level regions.