Insafe Weekly Update

Welcome to the first edition of the Weekly Update for 2024.

An urgent reminder to all EU co-funded Safer Internet Centres on this previous request...

As you might be aware, last year, the European Commission adopted a new strategy on Web 4.0 and virtual worlds to steer the next technological transition and ensure an open, secure, trustworthy, fair and inclusive digital environment for EU citizens, businesses and public administrations (read more in the EC press corner).

The official communication has a section (3.1.3.) specifically on empowered and protected children in virtual worlds, and refers to the BIK portal as providing educational resources on virtual environments for young people, parents and educators, as well as highlighting awareness-raising activities by Safer Internet Centres across the EU. In order to support this commitment, we therefore wish to conduct a mapping of available resources on virtual environments for young people and any related SIC initiatives.

Virtual worlds are defined as persistent, immersive environments, based on technologies including 3D and extended reality (XR), which make it possible to blend physical and digital worlds in real-time, for a variety of purposes such as designing, making simulations, collaborating, learning, socialising, carrying out transactions or providing entertainment. Resources identified by this mapping exercise should be education-oriented to make young people aware of what virtual reality (VR) possibilities are and what it allows/they can do with it, but with a balanced approach (that is, recommendations on safety and awareness-raising), covering both pedagogical and online safety aspects.

Please email us directly with a summary of your national situation and resources via info@betterinternetforkids.eu, at your earliest opportunity – we may then follow up with you directly with more questions.

Thanks, in advance, for your responses.

Assessment platform submissions are now due for helplines and hotlines reporting on the fourth quarter of 2023 (October-December inclusive). Supporting documents, including reporting templates and guidelines are available in the BIK community (login first). A reminder that the Good Practice Guide on helpline data (March 2023) can be accessed in the BIK community here (login first). 

A reminder also that any submissions made via the Excel template should have the .xlsx file extension. 

Please note, the deadline for all submissions is the close of business on Friday, 12 January 2024. For further information, please contact Karl (helplines) or Abby (hotlines).

Assessment Platform (AP) submissions are now due for awareness data reporting. The submissions should cover the period of 1 January – 31 December 2023 and the deadline to submit is the close of business on Monday, 15 January 2024. The reporting template can be found in the BIK community (login first).  

Please note that the awareness data submission form is being updated in two phases; the first update includes changes required by the technical specifications of the call for the current BIK Phase 5 project, and these are already included in the submission form template available in the BIK community. The second and more extensive update will be implemented after the BIK platform redevelopment in 2024 and will be made available for next year’s submission.

More details on these updates, as well as general guidance on the submission process, have been shared with SICs via email. If you have not received this email, or should you have any further questions about the awareness data submissions, please contact Eray.

In the context of developing the new BIK Knowledge hub, EUN is compiling a repository of relevant and current public concerns and topics relating to BIK matters discussed in the news media/public discourse of the Member States. The repository will also help collate press statements from SICs and other relevant national authorities in response to these topics (where available). Inputs will be drawn from regular contributions by the SIC network members. The central aim of the repository is to provide an up-to-date overview and inform the European Commission about relevant topics being discussed at MS level. The BIK team will process SIC contributions and share them with the EC. At a later stage, entries may also be published (curated and anonymised) in a publicly accessible repository on the knowledge hub.

All SICs are encouraged to regularly submit entries via this online form.

In case of questions, please contact Valentina.

In an online meeting planned for Thursday, 11 January 2024 at 11:00 CET, colleagues from the French helpline (e-enfance) will be sharing some of the work that they do to support younger users. There will be an opportunity for others to share their own experiences in working with and reaching out to younger users; use this link to join the meeting. For further information, please contact Karl.

A second meeting of the helpline early warning group will take place on Wednesday, 17 January 2024 at 11:00 CET. It will provide an opportunity for helplines to share any issues they are seeing with young people who are contacting the helpline, new trends, challenges, apps or websites that they think other helpline colleagues should be aware of. Use this link to join the meeting; for further information, please contact Karl.

The minutes of the previous helpline early warning group meeting, along with a recording of the session, are available from the BIK community (login first).

Emil, a colleague from the Danish helpline will lead the discussion and share information, particularly about the incel communities online in an online meeting on Monday, 12 February 2024 at 11:00 CET; use this link to join the meeting. For further information, please contact Karl.

Several colleagues from helplines and hotlines have already been approached by the organisation expected to become the Digital Services Coordinator (DSC) in their country and asked to consider applying to become a trusted flagger under the auspices of the Digital Services Act (DSA). This meeting, taking place online on Wednesday, 14 February 2024 at 14:00 CET, will be an opportunity to share experiences about the local negotiations that are taking place and to discuss good practice, financial implications, workload etc. Use this link to join the meeting; for further information, please contact Karl.

Many thanks to all those who attended the online meeting before the festive break to discuss a helpline case management system (HART) that has been developed by colleagues from the Dutch helpline and particular thanks to Yvette, Rivka and their colleagues for explaining the tool and what it can do. A link to a recording of the meeting along with the slides used and a report on what was discussed are available from the BIK community (login first). For further information, please contact Karl.

The Media & Learning Association (MLA) is dedicated to advancing education through the strategic utilisation of media and digital technologies across all levels of education. Its mission is to promote and foster innovation and creativity in teaching and learning by empowering educators, students, and institutions with the necessary skills and competencies to effectively integrate media and digital tools into their daily practices. MLA is partnering with EUN on the development of media literacy campaigning work taking place in 2024; more information to follow.

In the meantime, MLA has asked us to extend an invitation to SICs to participate in - and share information on - the EDUmake showcase: localising educational resources, taking place on Wednesday, 24 January 2024 from 14:00 – 15:30 CET. During this session, primarily aimed at primary and secondary education, participants will discover the power of adapting educational content to local contexts, languages, and cultures to foster relevance and relatability. This session features the newly released EDUbox Politics, addressing the 2024 European Parliament elections, alongside localised EDUboxes within the EDUmake project.

Discover more and register to participate on the MLA website.

Safer Internet Day dissemination plan (edition 1)
As in customary, the first edition of the dissemination plan for the 2024 edition of Safer Internet Day is available; it can be accessed from the SID minisite here (SID resources section).

Please note: if localising SID resources from the Canva file, please be sure to make local copies first and make your changes in your copies.

Safer Internet Day public profile page updates
All Safer Internet Centres are asked to update their SID public profile pages for the next edition as soon as possible via the customary online form. Please remember that you may update your profile as many times as needed leading up to the campaign. We will make the changes to the SID profile pages centrally and confirm when done. Thanks to all SICs that have already done so.

Safer Internet Day 2024 reporting template
The customary SID reporting template is now available to download from the BIK community (login first) for completion following the campaign. The deadline for returning the completed reporting template to the SID Helpdesk is COB on Tuesday, 5 March 2024 (or sooner if possible).

Safer Internet Day key messages
A SID key messages document, which SICs are invited to use as the basis for their own materials, is available from the Join SID tab of the SID minisite.

Safer Internet Day logo set
Access the SID 2024 logo set and Guidelines on the use of the SID logo and related campaign assets from the Join SID tab of the SID minisite. Please remember, the SID logo should not be modified without prior permission, and the EC and joint Insafe/INHOPE logos should remain intact.

Sharing network SID plans
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 what other SICs are planning and make connections where there are synergies. The EC can also access this to help inform SID planning. Please update the document regularly as your plans progress. 

In case of questions
Further updates will follow in future Weekly Updates but in case of questions on any aspect of the Safer Internet Day 2024 campaign, please contact saferinternetday@betterinternetforkids.eu.

The EU policy roundtable, hosted by the menABLE project, will bring together a diverse group of public and private stakeholders, including policymakers, representatives from civil society, academia, industries, education and young people to discuss priorities in tackling gender-based violence (GBV) online. The primary objective of the roundtable is to present and discuss the research findings of the menABLE Research Report – an empirical study on understanding and responding to gender-based violence online; and the Educational Toolbox concept - a plug-and-play game to prevent and combat gender-based violence online.

The roundtable will take place on Tuesday, 20 February 2024 in Brussels and online. For more information about the event, agenda, speakers’ bios and registration, please visit the menABLE website. 

The European Digital and Media Literacy Conference is taking place from Tuesday, 27 February 2024 to Friday, 1 March 2024 in Brussels. It puts the many faces of digital and media literacy in the European spotlight during the Belgian EU presidency. The conference is focused on showcasing and exchanging initiatives, tools, projects and practices that can be integrated into your own work or policy. Meet and connect with professionals from around the EU and from all policy levels. Let’s strengthen European cooperation and the future of Digital and Media Literacy! Attending the conference is free, but you need to apply to ensure a good European spread of participants. SIC representatives are warmly invited! 

More information is available from www.medialiteracymatters.eu. In case of questions, please contact Andy Demeulenaere (Coordinator at Mediawijs).

• Who owns my game? (SIC FI)
• ‘The Blue light generation’ needs the support of adults (SIC FI)
• How to react to intimate pictures being shared in primary school class chats (SIC AT)
• 'Respect and Empathy’ exhibition of student artwork in Ireland (SIC IE)
• Together for a better and safer internet in Malta (SIC MT)
• "Casting the Net”: what teens need to know about personal data, GDPR and our rights (SIC IE)
• Do you surf the internet safely? First national meeting of young volunteers in Portugal (SIC PT)
• Child Focus celebrated its 25th anniversary (SIC BE)
• Internet Safe&Fun: 7,000 elementary school students learning about online safety in Belgium (SIC BE)
• Empowering online safety: new nationwide media campaign by the Greek Safer Internet Centre (SIC GR)
• Sharenting: tips for parents and caregivers (SIC BE)
• Online safety tips from the Belgian Safer Internet Centre (SIC BE)
• Artificial intelligence (AI): should parents allow their children to use ChatGPT, Dall-E and more? (SIC AT)
• Learn some of the most used acronyms on social media (SIC PT)
• New online course about victims of teenage pimps available (SIC BE)
• Slovenian teenagers and online pornography (SIC SI)
• The final conference of the European SafeOnline Initiative (SIC BE)
• GrooMix: a grooming prevention card game for professionals (SIC BE)

Remember to submit your public portal blog articles to the BIK content mailbox; they count towards your SIC’s lump sum mechanism (LSM) criteria.

Helpline case studies

Safer Internet Centres have been busy in the helpline case repository over the festive break with approximately 60 new cases uploaded from Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Portugal, and Spain. The topics covered are diverse, but include deep nudes/deep fakes spread in school, grooming of young people with disabilities and cyberbullying in special needs education, to financial fraud and credit card security breaches, to name just a few. Check out the helpline case repository in the BIK community (login first) for the full overview.

Helpline community of practice

• Latvian Child Helpline videos about online safety translated on national TV
• Latvian Child Helpline 116111 counsellors learn about AI
• More than 300 youngsters participate in safer internet workshops in Latvia
• Latvian Child Helpline 116111 organises online discussion
• Latvian Child Helpline organises conference: “Let's play”
• Workshop at the conference of the Lithuanian Emotional Support Services Association

We hope that you are enjoying exploring the BIK platform. Please note, a BIK user guide is available to download from the BIK community (login first). In case of questions or issues when using any aspect of the BIK platform, please contact us using the contact link in the top right navigation area or email support@betterinternetforkids.eu.

IMPORTANT – if you have new starters who need to register for the platform, please direct them to www.betterinternetforkids.eu/register, in parallel with sending an email to support@betterinternetforkids.eu so that we can verify them and provide further instructions.

• Better Internet for Kids (BIK) public portal:
  www.betterinternetforkids.eu; #BIK; #BIKbulletin
• New BIK strategy (BIK+) on BIK portal:
  www.betterinternetforkids.eu/newbikstrategy; #BIKplus
• Safer Internet Forum (SIF) on BIK portal:
  www.betterinternetforkids.eu/sif;#SIF2023; #SaferInternetForum
• BIK Policy Map on BIK portal:
  www.betterinternetforkids.eu/bikmap; #BIKPolicyMap
• Safer Internet Day (SID) minisite:
  www.saferinternetday.org; #SID2023; #SID2024; #SaferInternetDay
• Positive Online Content (POCC) minisite:
  www.positiveonlinecontentforkids.eu; #positivecontent; #PositiveOnlineContent; #POCC
• BIK Youth minisite:
  www.bikyouth.eu; #BIKyouth; #Pledge2Youth
• 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