Australians supported Safer Internet Day 2021 by starting the chat about online safety

On Tuesday, 9 February 2021, we celebrated the 18th edition of Safer Internet Day (SID) all across the world, including in Australia. In this article, the Australian Office of the eSafety Commissioner, in its role of Safer Internet Day Committee for Australia, shares a summary of the events that took place.

Date 2021-07-13 Author Office of the eSafety Commissioner, the Australian Safer Internet Day Committee Section sid Audience organisations and industry, parents and carers, teachers, educators and professionals
Map of Australia

Australians came together to support Safer Internet Day 2021 in record numbers. With the world online more than ever, the need for raising online safety awareness has taken on a new urgency. There has never been a more important time to work towards creating a better, safer internet.

Safer Internet Day falls at the beginning of the first school term in Australia. It’s a wonderful opportunity for an uplifting and universal campaign that gets people thinking about their online safety priorities and intentions for the year ahead.

This year, the eSafety Office revisited their eSafety subtheme and asked Australians to “start the chat” about online safety – in their homes, workplaces, schools and wider communities. Social distancing restrictions precluded the possibility of holding in-person events, so efforts focused on shared virtual spaces, generating unique content, engaging with new audiences and building alliances to amplify key messages.

Together, Australians generated news stories, television spots, videos, staff and customer communications, podcasts, pledges, press releases, newsletters and more. The eSafety Office released new research on the Digital lives of Aussie teens, lit up social media, and filled broadcast media with Safer Internet Day messages and important online safety advice. Supporters and schools participated in webinars and virtual classrooms, watched videos, read stories and sang songs, and used the office’s education resources to help make every day a safer internet day.

Take a look at the eSafety Office’s Safer Internet Day 2021 infographic to see the phenomenal results and just how important this special day is to Australians and the world. Visit eSafety.gov.au to learn about some of our other initiatives and how they are keeping these vital conversations going throughout the year. Whoever we are, whatever we do – we can all start the chat about online safety.

You can find more information about Safer Internet Day activities in Australia on the Safer Internet Day website.

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