First, Offlimits organised an event as the official Kick Off of Safer Internet Day with our Youth Panel. On the 4 February, they organised a network event for stakeholders on the topic of age assurance. We invited various speakers. Simone van der Hof, a professor at Leiden University and an expert on the topic of age assurance, opened the event with a session on what age assurance possibilities exist and what it should look like when considering children’s rights. Then, Tiffany van Stormbroek from the Dutch organisation NICAM explained their Kijkwijzer model for movies and television, and how this could translate to the online world.

Next, Jessica Piotrowski shared insights from her research about the mental impact of social media and started a conversation with our youth panel on the mental impact they experience and what they feel should be improved regarding social media. She emphasised the importance of not only focusing on age assurance but also keeping other risk factors in mind. In the final session, the youth panel prepared questions for a Q&A with a panel consisting of representatives from the three big social media platforms: TikTok, Meta, and Snapchat. The panel asked them directly about topics they worry about, and the platforms had the role of explaining their participation and efforts in those areas. This resulted in a very fruitful discussion.

Besides that, Helpwanted, the Dutch Helpline, participated in a webinar on online safety. Our policy officer Sandra presented on the helpline’s topics to parents, explaining safe online behaviour and providing practical tips to keep families safe online. We discussed the reports we receive on the helpline and the different categories, explaining their meaning and raising awareness of the potential harm that could occur online. It was an interactive session, shown to over 600 parents, which resulted in a very informative discussion.

In the Dutch libraries, various suggestions were made for children to read about online safety. Lists were created for different target groups: 0 to 6, 6 to 12, and 12 o 18. Various books written on the topic were suggested in these lists, drawing a lot of attention to media literacy in the libraries.

Our annual ‘Teacher for a day’ concept, created by Veiliginternetten.nl, was also available again. The idea is that regular citizens can download this accessible lesson and teach it to the children around them, whether they are their own children, neighbours, grandchildren, etc. The lesson is designed for children around the age of 10 to 12 and was specifically made for people who don’t regularly teach. However, teachers could also download the lesson and discuss these online safety topics in class.

Hackshield, a game for young people to become cyber agents, also paid special attention to Safer Internet Day. Extra information was shared on Safer Internet Day, and the kids were encouraged to talk about digital and online safety with their family and peers. Extra quests and educational content were added to the game for the entire week around Safer Internet Day. Additional tips for cyber agents and even extra rewards were also added to the game.

Finally, UNICEF organised a conference together with Mind Us and the Municipality of Amsterdam on children’s rights and digitalisation. Robbert, the president of Offlimits, took part in the plenary programme and provided a presentation. The Dutch Queen Máxima also visited the conference, as she’s an ambassador for Mind Us, one of the parties that organised the event.

Learn more about Safer Internet Day activities in the Netherlands on their SID page on our platform!

Further information about the Dutch Safer Internet Centre can be found on the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) public portal, including links to its national websites and other contact information. Similar information can be found on the BIK portal for all Safer Internet Centres in Europe.