Key topics of focus
Although the #SaferInternet4EU campaign placed a focus on creating a safer and better internet generally, and the need for digital and media literacy, a special focus was placed on the issues of fake news, cyberbullying, connected toys and privacy, sexting, exposure to harmful or disturbing content, and grooming. On the occasion of Safer Internet Day (SID) 2018, several Safer Internet Centres in Europe provided some top tips on tackling these issues:
Additionally, SICs have produced a great many resources, in a range of languages, to help raise awareness of these issues and these are being added to constantly. Read on to find out more...
Fake news | Cyberbullying | Connected toys and privacy | Sexting
Exposure to harmful or disturbing content | Grooming
Fake news
- Austrian SIC: Handbooks and training for teachers
- Austrian SIC: Fake news bingo
- Belgian SIC: Theoriesducomplot.be
- Bulgarian SIC: Literate children in the digital era: Compasя for parents
- Danish SIC: Youth and media literacy
- Dutch SIC: Celebrating a decade of media literacy in the Netherlands
- French SIC: Info Hunters
- Finnish SIC: Video lectures about media literacy
- German SIC: Fact or Fake
- Latvian SIC: Fake or real? Check before you "Like" and "Share"!
- Luxembourgish SIC: Fact sheet: fake news (in French and German)
- Slovenian SIC: Do not believe everything you find on the internet (Kahoot quiz)
- UK SIC: Curriculum overview for digital literacy
Cyberbullying
A selection of resources from Safer Internet Centres (SICs) are listed below - keep checking the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) resource gallery for the latest too:
- Czech SIC: Donkey ears
- German SIC: Cyberbullying first aid app
- German SIC: „What to Do about (Cyber)bullying?" Systemic intervention and prevention in schools
- Greek SIC: Cyberbullying
- Irish SIC: Up2Us anti-bullying kit
- Lithuanian SIC: Flyers about cyberbullying for children, parents and teachers
- Luxembourgish SIC: Cyberbullying: concrete help (in French and German)
- UK SIC: 6 tips for having a conversation with your child about cyberbullying
- UK SIC: Cyberbullying guidance for schools
Connected toys and privacy
Internet connected objects (known as the "Internet of Things" (IotT) are increasingly coming into our homes, with objects such as watches, fridges, toothbrushes, or coffee machines, turning our houses into Smart Houses. Among the newly connected familiar objects are also internet connected toys that parents today are starting to choose for their children. Internet connected toys can offer new, important opportunities for play, learning, health and educational support, thanks to their interactive and personalised features, but they also raise questions about safety, security, privacy, trust and other fundamental rights of children. Indeed, Internet connected toys, as is the case with any other connected device, may record personal information regarding our children's lives, and then use and share the data. [Source: JRC report "Kaleidoscope on the Internet of Toys: Safety, security, privacy and societal insights".]
- Dutch SIC: Internet of Toys checklist: 10 points to consider for parents (in Dutch and English)
- Estonian SIC: Secret communication on the internet: Internet of things
A selection of resources from Safer Internet Centres (SICs) are listed below - keep checking the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) resource gallery for the latest too:
Sexting
A selection of resources from Safer Internet Centres (SICs) are listed below - keep checking the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) resource gallery for the latest too:
- Belgian SIC: HELP! Sexting? (in Dutch and English)
- Belgian SIC: Sexting.be - A 360° approach (in Dutch and French)
- Danish SIC: Sex, revenge and video - about children and young people sharing intimate images
- Dutch SIC: L.O.V.E. online toolkit
- Greek SIC: Sexting guide
- Italian SIC: La ragazza visibile
- Portuguese SIC: Sexting
- UK SIC: So you got naked online (also available in Danish)
Exposure to harmful or disturbing content
Potentially harmful content covers a range of content such as that discussing terrorism, online prostitution, drugs, eating disorders, self-harm, and so on. It also includes content and sites promoting suicide and explaining ways to commit suicide.
A selection of resources from Safer Internet Centres (SICs) are listed below - keep checking the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) resource gallery for the latest too:
- Croatian SIC: Four videos of dangerous behaviour online
- German SIC: Click E for Ethics - harmful online behaviour
- Lithuanian SIC: We are against harmful content on the internet!
- Polish SIC: Protect your child - video tutorials for parents
Grooming
Grooming is the the process by which an online user gains the trust of another user with the intention of doing them harm or coercing them into engaging in risky or harmful behaviour. This behaviour could occur online (e.g. sending a sexually explicit image) or offline (e.g. agreeing to meet in person). [Source: UKCCIS - Education for a Connected World: A framework to equip children and young people for digital life.]
A selection of resources from Safer Internet Centres (SICs) are listed below - keep checking the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) resource gallery for the latest too: