Safer Internet Day takes place each year in February - and this year it is being held on February 9th. The main objective of Safer Internet Day is to bring together relevant public and private stakeholders, in as many countries as possible, to raise awareness about safe and responsible use of new technologies, especially among children and young people. The day operates through a series of 'country nodes' - in the UK the country node is Child Exploitation and Online Protection Agency - see more about the UK activity at CEOP's Thinkuknow site at http://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/.
The theme for SID2010 is 'Think Before You Post' (or rather "Think B4 U post!"), and the hope is to make the whole week (from Monday 8th February - Friday 12th February 2010) a week of action in the UK.
Safer Internet week in the UK will see the launch of the new e-safety strategy, first announced in December 2009, which will target parents and children. Based on the green cross code (Stop, Look, Listen are the rules taught to children to make sure they cross the road safely), the new digital code ('Zip It, Block It, Flag it') to be taught at primary schools will follow a similar pattern.
This new online green cross code is one part of the government "Click Clever, Click Safe", strategy drawn up by the UK Council on Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS). This includes making it compulsory to teach online safety to children aged 5 and up in England from 2011.
The three parts of the green cross code are self explanatory:
* Zip It - Protect yourself. Don't share personal details with strangers online
* Block It - Stop unwanted emails coming to children and stop them accessing certain Internet sites
* Flag It - Flag up any suspicious people or websites to the relevant person, whether parent, teacher or the police.
