Insafe Weekly Update

If you haven't already, please take a moment to complete the short evaluation survey from the recent Insafe Training meeting; this helps us plan future meetings.

A reminder that you can find presentations from the meeting in the BIK community (login first). A fuller report is being compiled; this, along with other presentations, will be shared in due course.

For further information, please contact Karl.

Many thanks to those people who attended the recent online meeting to discuss trusted flaggers under the DSA. You can find a report from the meeting along with a link to the recording in the BIK community (login first).

For further information, please contact Karl.

A new lump sum mechanism (LSM) scheme has now been launched under the current BIK coordination contract (2025-2027) for EU co-funded Safer Internet Centres. Information on the new scheme was shared with SIC Coordinators at the Insafe Steering Committee meeting last Friday. There will also be an online session to familiarise SICs with the new LSM scheme on Tuesday, 28 October 2025, from 14:00 - 15:00 CET. Join the meeting using this link.

In brief, the new scheme will run continuously through to March 2027 (i.e. there will just be a single cycle). Co-funded SICs will be able to claim across three levels of contribution:

• Claim level 1 will provide a mandatory baseline for SIC contributions to ensure that key platform content is kept up to date.
• Claim level 2 is the mid-tier claim level. It will still require the mandatory baseline to be met, but will allow SICs to pick from a range of other activities to allow them more flexibility while sharing good practice and expertise.
• Claim level 3 is the high-tier claim level. It will still require the mandatory baseline to be met, allowing SICs to choose from a range of other activities, thereby providing them with more flexibility. To be eligible for this claim level, SICs must additionally contribute to consultation activities to support the evaluation of the BIK+ strategy.

The maximum LSM claim cannot exceed 5,000 euros per co-funded SIC for the duration of the current BIK contract (2025-2027).

In case of questions in the meantime, please contact Sarah.

The next early warning meeting for helplines will take place on Wednesday, 29 October 2025 at 11:00 CET; join the meeting using this link. Please remember it is possible to use the Teams chat to share any information between meetings.

A reminder that you can find a report from the previous meeting and a link to the recording in the BIK community (login first).

Please contact Karl for any further information on helpline early warning meetings.

This online meeting will take place on Thursday, 30 October 2025 at 11:00 CET. SafeToNet have developed “groundbreaking AI that, when embedded into the operating system of a device, stops a child from seeing or producing sexual content”. They are working with a number of organisations globally, including the eSafety commissioner in Australia, the Deutscher Bundestag, the European Parliament, and the International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children. They will explain more about the device and how it works, along with future plans. You can use this link to join the meeting.

Please contact Karl if you have any questions or require additional information.  

The next online meeting for youth coordinators will take place on Thursday, 30 October 2025 at 11.00 CET. During this meeting, we will focus on the New didactic kit 2024-2025 developed by Generazioni Connesse. Access the meeting using this link.

For further information, please contact Chiara or Carolina.

The next early warning meeting for awareness centres will take place on Wednesday, 12 November 2025 at 11:00 CET; use this link to join. Please remember it is possible to use the Teams chat to share any information between meetings.

A reminder that you can find a report from the previous meeting and a link to the recording in the BIK community (login first).

Please contact Karl for any further information on awareness early warning meetings.

Colleagues from the SIC in Luxembourg will present their Cyber Desk, which offers face-to-face counselling alongside the Luxembourg House of Cyber Security. The service operates with a cybersecurity expert and a psychologist/pedagogue to provide both practical and emotional support. The meeting will take place on Wednesday, 26 November 2025 at 11:00 CET. Access the meeting using this link.

In case of questions in the meantime, please contact Karl.

Dr Cosmin Nada from the University Institute of Lisbon will present some research evidence on the impact of digital tools on well-being, along with Portuguese recommendations from DGE (the Ministry of Education in Portugal). Dr Nada is also part of the ENESET network, which is producing a report for the European Commission focusing on mobile phone bans in schools across Europe, and will share some of the research findings. The meeting will take place on Thursday, 11 December 2025 at 11:00 CET; use this link to join.

For further information, please contact Karl. 

This online meeting will take place on Monday, 15 December 2025 at 11:00 CET. During the meeting, we will hear from colleagues at the Swedish SIC and Linköping University, who will share reports and research from Sweden. You can use this link to join the meeting.

Please contact Karl for further information. 

From group chats to gaming servers, today’s youth connect, learn and grow through online relationships. But alongside connection comes some risks: cyberbullying, grooming, peer pressure, and more.

This BIK MOOC (massive open online course), Helping kids build and manage healthy online relationships, offers practical guidance for educators, youth workers, and caregivers to navigate these challenges with care and confidence. Already in progress and continuing until mid-November, the course participants can explore real strategies, discover ready-made tools, and join a European community of professionals facing similar challenges. The MOOC will be delivered in English.

Further information and online registration are available here.

Safer Internet Centres are encouraged to continue sharing information on the BIK MOOC with their own networks and contacts. Registration remains open, even though the MOOC has now started.

A promotional pack is available, featuring sample texts, social media posts, and visuals. 

Registration continues for Safer Internet Forum (SIF) 2025, which will take place in a hybrid format in Brussels and online on Thursday, 4 December 2025, with a title of Why age matters: Protecting and empowering youth in the digital age.

As already communicated to the Insafe Steering Committee, in-person attendance is restricted to TWO colleagues from each Safer Internet Centre (this will typically be the SIC Coordinator (or their designate) and the youth chaperone (if this is someone from your SIC)). Online participation is available for colleagues who are unable to attend in person; there are no restrictions on the number of online attendees.

If you have not already done so, SIC Coordinators are asked to confirm the names of their in-person delegation as soon as possible.

We will start promoting online participation for interested stakeholders via our social media channels this week; SICs are also asked to share this information via their own channels.

In case of questions, please contact saferinternetforum@betterinternetforkids.eu.

The next edition of Safer Internet Day is fast approaching, and campaign activities will start ramping up in the coming months. A reminder that SID 2026 will be marked by a global day of focus on Tuesday, 10 February 2026, and events and activities will take place throughout the whole month, across Europe and the globe! 

Sharing network SID plans
As is customary, we have once again made an online document available for SICs and SIC+ countries to share their SID plans with other members of the network. A reminder that this is an internal document only, to allow network members to see the plans of other SIC/SIC+ organisations, and to make connections where there are synergies. The EC also refer to this regularly to help inform SID planning. Please update the document regularly as your plans progress. 

Updating SID public profile pages
A reminder that direct access to update SID profiles is now possible for Safer Internet Centres via the BIK platform. Please contact the SID helpdesk to check or nominate a SID profile editor for your SIC.

SID assets
A reminder that a save-the-date logo for SID 2026 is available to download in the BIK community (login first). We will progressively start sharing other assets to support the promotion of SID 2026 in the coming months.

Please keep checking the Insafe Weekly Update for the latest information, or contact the SID helpdesk with any further questions regarding the 2026 campaign.

• Raising awareness of the Digital Services Act in Latvia (SIC LV)
• Empowering youth through the Digital Services Act: the experience of the Italian Safer Internet Centre (SIC IT)

Access the full BIK news article archive here.

Please contact the BIK content mailbox with any article submissions or if you have any queries.

Selected presentations from the October 2025 Insafe Training meeting are now available in the BIK community.

A reminder that reports from online meetings for awareness centres and helplines are now available in the BIK community.

Safer Internet Centres have been busy uploading resources to the BIK community resource repository: explore or upload your SIC's resources here (alternatively, access the public resource directory here).

Equally, SICs have been uploading new helpline case studies: explore or upload your SIC's case studies here.

Please remember to log in to access these links.

Need help with the BIK platform?
Please refer to the BIK platform user guides for support with regular tasks (such as resource and helpline case study uploads).

The recently updated Insafe induction manual also provides a good background on the tools and services available to network members, the various commitments you have as a network member (including a handy checklist by strand), and contact information for team members.

Alternatively, we are happy to schedule short online support calls at any time. Please use the contact form on the BIK platform or contact the BIK support mailbox initially. We will then schedule a call at a mutually convenient time.

Please note the updated URLs for the new BIK platform:

• Better Internet for Kids (BIK):
  better-internet-for-kids. europa.eu; #BIK; #BIKbulletin
• BIK strategy (BIK+):
  better-internet-for-kids.europa.eu/en/bik/bik-plus-strategy; #BIKplus
• Safer Internet Forum (SIF):
  better-internet-for-kids.europa.eu/en/sif; #SIF2025; #SaferInternetForum
• BIK Knowledge hub:
  better-internet-for-kids.europa.eu/en/knowledge-hub; #BIKPolicyMap
• BIK Youth:
  better-internet-for-kids.europa.eu/en/bik-youth; #BIKyouth
• Safer Internet Day (SID):
  better-internet-for-kids.europa.eu/en/saferinternetday; #SaferInternetDay; #SID2025; #SID2026
• DSA for YOUth campaign:
  #DSAforYOUth; #DSA
• Project Facebook profiles:
  Insafe, Safer Internet Day, Insafe network closed Facebook group, INHOPE
• Project X (formerly Twitter) profiles:
  @insafenetwork; @safeinternetday; @BIK_youth; @inhope_pr
• Project LinkedIn profile:
  Better Internet for Kids