Safer Internet Day is a worldwide event initiated by the European Commission and organised every year in February, with the aim of making the internet a fun, creative, satisfying and safe place for everyone. Celebrated in more than 170 countries, Safer Internet Day has rapidly spread beyond Europe and is now a major event on the global digital agenda.

In Belgium, Safer Internet Day is supported by the B-BICO Consortium (Belgian Better Internet Consortium - www.b-bico.be), which brings together players directly involved in online safety, media literacy and the positive use of this fantastic medium. The strength of this consortium: bringing together partners on both sides of the language border, who are committed to the safe and responsible use of the internet among young people.

The B-BICO consortium encouraged schools, libraries, sports clubs and youth movements to set up one or more educational actions on Tuesday, 11 February 2020 to make young people aware of the different facets of virtual life, such as rights and responsibilities, multiple identities, disinformation, privacy, creating content, and so on.

Highlighting the benefits of the use of the internet can help raise young people's awareness of the pitfalls. "We need to prepare children and invite young people to think about the consequences of their digital actions so that they learn how to protect their privacy on social networks and thus maximise the opportunities of their online experience," said Heidi De Pauw, CEO of Child Focus.

Parents, teachers, businesses, digital professionals, politicians, young people or citizens could also show their commitment by sharing concrete actions through social networks that they intended to work on to make the internet a user-friendly and secure space. This campaign is accessible at: www.togetherforabetterinternet.be

For more information about Safer Internet Day activities in Belgium, visit the Belgian Safer Internet Centre's Safer Internet Day profile page.

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