Better Internet for Kids

In recent years, this observance has gained a lot of attention in the Czech Republic not only from state institutions, commercial entities, and organisations dedicated to the safety of children on the internet, but also from schools and individuals. 

The CZ.NIC association coordinates the activities to celebrate SID through the Czech Safer Internet Centre, which it also manages. 

Mapping the online experiences from home of young people 

Due to the ongoing pandemic, SID activities were once again moved to the online space. Despite this limitation, several hundred entities took part in the celebrations, and many organisations illustrated their existing security initiatives and their innovations on the day. The Czech Safer Internet Centre, in cooperation with Palacký University in Olomouc and their eSafety project, presented the research Online world in children's homes. 

The aim of the research was to map the environment of children's homes with regards to the risky means of communication that young people experience in the digital world. The research mapped risky situations from the experience of young people themselves, what preventive measures are implemented at home, what issues they need to deal with, how internet usage is regulated at home – time limits, content restrictions, and more. The results of the research were not promising, so the Czech Safer Internet Centre decided to increase the capacity of educational events and initiatives aimed at promoting online safety at home. The findings from the Stoponline.cz hotline, which is dedicated to reporting harmful content on the internet, and especially child pornography, were also presented in the research. Last year, the line gathered 3,944 reports. 

Other initiatives to celebrate Safer Internet Day in the Czech Republic 

The state administration has traditionally been involved in Safer Internet Day. For this edition, the Czech Safer Internet Centre organised a press conference in cooperation with the Czech Ministry of the Interior. The Deputy Prime Minister of the Czech Republic and Minister for Regional Development Ivan Bartoš and the First Deputy Minister of the Interior Lukáš Kolářík attended the conference. The Vice President of the European Parliament Dita Charanzová also sent a greeting. The event was personally supported by representatives of the National Office for Cyber and Information Security, the Police of the Czech Republic and others. As part of the celebrations, a conference illustrating selected projects and activities in the field of online security was organised. 

Commercial institutions were also heavily involved in the SID celebrations. Apart from the traditional supporters, additional support came from internet company and media house Seznam.cz, O2 or T-mobile, several banks, antivirus companies and others. Non-commercial institutions involved included, among others, the Czech Safety Line, the Children's Crisis Centre, Digi-Coalition, One World in Schools and Regions for a Safe Internet. 

Additionally, the number of schools and universities participating in the celebrations is constantly growing. One highlight is the Dyjákovice elementary school, which worked on the theme of a safer internet quite creatively in class. Awareness-raising campaigns on Ámos Vision touch screens involved more than 250 schools. 

You can find more social media activities for Safer Internet Day 2022 on Twitter with the hashtags #SaferInternetDay and #SID2022. Save the date for the 20th edition of Safer Internet Day on Tuesday, 7 February 2023. 

Find out more about the work of the Czech Safer Internet Centre, including its awareness raising, helpline, hotline and youth participation services – or find similar information for Safer Internet Centres throughout Europe.