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Insafe Newsletter
Issue 42: February 2009 |
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Welcome to the Insafe Newsletter!
Safer Internet Day 2009
"Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?" The wicked witch in Snow White turned to her magic mirror to see herself as the world saw her and for reassurance that she was indeed the fairest. Had the mirror not been quite so brutal in its assessment, the story might have turned out quite differently.
Social networking is the means by which we can choose to give an image of ourselves to the world. The full consequences of what we show through this are impossible to judge. The image can become distorted and our profile tainted. By the same token we have to exercise some caution as to what might be lying behind the mirror.
One of the most publicised stories on internet safety last year was concerned with the aftermath of Megan Meier's suicide following Lori Drew's misrepresentation of herself as "Josh Evans" on MySpace. This story continues to attract much polemic as, in part, it shows how limited existing laws are on the issue of (cyber)-bullying.
Whilst other risks have corresponding legislation - however well or poorly applied - cyberbullying is not always so well covered. Drew's prosecution under the US Computer Fraud and Abuse Act may perhaps show how creative prosecutors were in their response to the creation of a false profile. Whilst sexual predation and pornography are often the risks that spring to mind when looking at internet safety issues, in the words of the latest report from the Internet Safety Technical Task Force: "Bullying and harassment, most often by peers, are the most frequent threats that minors face, both online and offline."
Had "Josh Evans" been real and had he written the same things to Megan, the prosecution could not have taken place under the same laws but the tragic results would, presumably, been the same. It isn't the fraud that pushed Megan to suicide but her rejection by someone she thought she could trust.
Social networking and other new forms of communication may help the bully taunt his or her target; but in order to combat cyberbullying what is paramount is an awareness of the possible consequences. The bullies' excuses that "what started as a prank went too far" or that they "never meant any harm" can only be tackled by showing what harm is caused by this anti-social behaviour. Reasons enough, we hope, why Insafe through the medium of Safer Internet Day is focusing this year on social networking and cyberbullying.
Keep it fun, keep control.
Readers' corner:
Hello,
I was particularly impressed with this months' newsletter (December 2008, The mobile internet). I'd love to see more of these which inform parents of the technical details which they find themselves being increasingly unable to keep up with.
Best Regards
Brian Roche
Thank you Brian for your kind words. Over the next months we intend to focus on the following topics:
- March - Safer Internet Day events reports
- April - Privacy in the digital age
- May - Social networking is more than SNS – other forms of online social networking
- June - Internet governance from a European perspective
We hope these will be of interest to you and all our readers. We invite feedback and suggestions to: info-insafe@eun.org
If you wish to keep up with what we're reading, you can see saferinternet.org's bookmarks on Delicious. You need no account to see these and they are tagged by type (report, trend, children, mobile etc.)
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10 February 2009, mark the date!
Safer Internet Day 2009 is fast approaching. Around the date of the event, a wide array of activities will take place across Europe and the world, ranging from press-conferences and workshops for children to rock concerts and seminars for educators and parents. Read more
SID 2009 in Germany – cyberbullying campaign and many other activities planned
Preparations for Safer Internet Day are well advanced in Germany. As in previous years, we are calling on organisations, institutions, companies and schools to participate with a range of events and activities. Read more
 Parental involvement to reduce children’s risk-taking online; the Norwegian focus on Safer Internet Day 2009It is a fact that knowledge is power, both for children and adults. However, knowledge is not the same as awareness. Research carried out by EU-kids Online, as well as other studies and surveys done by the Norwegian Media Authority, all conclude with the fact that children that get involved online at an early age, with the guidance and assistance of their parents / families, will show lower risk behaviour. That is why in Norway, the focus for SID 09, and indeed for the whole year, will be cyberbullying and parental involvement. Read more
The celebration of SID 09 in Denmark
This year the Danish node will focus on three target groups in the Safer Internet Day celebration: Children, Tweens/teens and adults (parents, teachers, media etc). Read more
Swedish Safer Internet Day ActivitiesThe Swedish Media Council will celebrate Safer Internet Day on February 10 by inviting high school students, their teachers and other relevant professionals to an afternoon of activities, screenings and lectures at the well-known Stockholm youth centre Fryshuset. Read more
 Winning Video Announced
3rd Annual Data Protection Day
The winner of the “Surf the net – think Privacy” competition – a pan-European video competition run by EUN and powered by Microsoft that invited young people from 15 to 19 to express their views and concerns about online privacy – has been announced. The winning entry was from Ilinca Razvan, Alexandru Coman and Cosmin Bogdan from Romania, with their video “ID”, which showcased how ‘public’ one’s identity can become online. Read more
 From European Commission Top News
Tuesday 10 February: Take part in the Safer Internet Day
Online technologies are becoming a favourite way for young people to communicate. However, they need to be aware of the potential risks they may encounter in the online environment, and know how to deal with them. INSAFE, the network of European Safer Internet Centres, has initiated the Safer Internet Day, an annual international event that will be celebrated in 2009 for the sixth time. Read more
€ 55 million to make the Internet a safer place for childrenThe EU has a new Safer Internet Programme as of 1 January 2009. Following the overwhelmingly positive vote on 23 October in which the European Parliament expressed its support for the new Safer Internet Programme, the Council of Ministers has adopted the new Programme. Read more
 Enhancing Child Safety and Online TechnologiesThe Final Report of the Internet Safety Technical Task Force to the Multi-State Working Group on Social Networking of State Attorneys General of the United States has just been published. The scope of the inquiry was to consider those technologies that industry and end users - including parents - can use to help keep minors safer on the Internet. Read more
Logged-on Kids
Internet and mobile phone use by pre-adolescents is becoming increasingly widespread in Italy. 86% use the Net and 95% have a mobile phone, chiefly in order to be in touch with friends and to make new ones. But 25% admit to having found themselves in dangerous situations. Read more
 Media Awareness Network Helps Youth Earn their Passport to the InternetMedia Awareness Network (MNet) recently launched Passport to the Internet, a new online tutorial funded by Inukshuk Wireless Learning Plan Fund and TELUS, to help students in Grades four to eight develop the critical thinking skills they need to navigate the Web in a secure and ethical manner. Read more
A Child-Friendly Internet Café - Ensuring the Safety of the Youngest Internet Café Customers
Are you the owner or an employee of an Internet café? Are you concerned about the safety of your youngest customers? Then join the national “Child-Friendly Internet Café” campaign and get a safe Internet café diploma. The campaign is an initiative of NASK, which carries out the European Commission's “Safer Internet” programme in Poland jointly with the Nobody's Children Foundation. Read more
 Saferinternet.pl partners “My first mobile phone” Social CampaignNowadays, when a mobile phone is generally accessible, even for children, it is very important to know what the consequences of irresponsible use might be. That’s why one of the Polish mobile operators CenterNet S.A., in cooperation with Saferinternet.pl Project, has organized a nationwide action about the rules of safe use of mobile phones. The campaign called “My first mobile”, which is the first step in a long term action, has been running since September 2008. Read more
Content Rating and Mobile Internet Safety Conference in Prague, December 2008
Inspired by the successful international conference CEE SIC 2007 (November 2007) and the professional conference Internet & Law (June 2008), their organisers decided to hold the second annual conference SIC 2008 on 15 December 2008 in the Nostic Palace in Prague. This time the conference focused on the internet and mobile communication. Read more
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An indecent profit
3 and 4 March 2009, London.
Preparing a European response to combat the commercial distribution of child abuse images, a two-day conference.
Read more
 Conference announcement and call for papers
EU Kids Online conference, 11 June 2009, London.
European research on cultural, contextual and risk issues regarding children and the internet
An international one-day conference for researchers, policy makers, industry, educators, NGOs and government to address the policy issues and research findings about children and the internet. Read more
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 Cypriot Teenagers Revealing Personal Information in FacebookResearch Presented in 7th European Conference on E-LearningOn November 7, 2008 the New Media Lab presented research at the 7th European Conference on E-Learning (ECEL). The research examined 'How much Personal and Sensitive Information do Cypriot Teenagers Reveal in Facebook?' The study showed that Cypriot teenagers disclose personal information about themselves and do not keep their Facebook settings on private, oblivious to the dangers that result from these actions. Read more The Internet Behaviour of CypriotsCypriots' on-line shopping habits - and how they access the internet - show up in ‘e-cypriot 08’ survey. Read more
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Insafe is a European network of 26 nodes in 26 countries that are dedicated to raising awareness of internet safety. It is coordinated by the European Schoolnet and supported by the European Commission through the Safer Internet Programme.
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