Protecting children from sexual grooming online
All over the world, child welfare organisations are working to protect girls and boys from sexualised violence in real life, and also on the internet. However, the sexual exploitation of girls and boys rests on traditions stretching over centuries, and it was not until the 1990s that pedagogical prevention efforts were undertaken and began raising awareness in kindergartens, schools, counselling services and youth authorities towards providing timely support to children and adolescents (Enders, 1990, p. 11).
The 17th edition of the international conference “Keeping children and young people safe online” is starting soon
The largest conference in Poland focusing on online threats and safety will take place on 26-29 September 2023. Experts from all over Europe will gather to discuss a broad spectrum of issues related to the safety of children and young people on the internet.
Ok Groomer, a game to equip minors with tools against online grooming
Playgrounds are no longer just physical playgrounds. Children also gather online to play. Individuals with bad intentions try to target children online through gaming platforms or social media – this phenomenon is called grooming. Child Focus launched the prevention game "Ok Groomer" to teach children aged 8-14 how to deal with grooming in a playful way.
Portuguese Penal Code
Article 176º of the Portuguese Penal Code describes the crime related to pornography of minors, including the grooming of minors, production, distribution, and dissemination of media material, in addition to other actions considered under the law. Article 193° prohibits sharing images or other digital material without consent.
(Source: BIK Policy Monitor 2024).
Entities responsible for implementation: Council of Ministers / Conselho de Ministros.
Tips for parents and carers for combating online grooming
As the years have passed by, the amount of time that Greek children and young people spend online has constantly increased. This year, the pandemic has rapidly accelerated this trend, and now even the elderly and very young children have begun to use the internet daily. A downside of this increased exposure is that unfortunately, one in five children in Greece has been exposed to online grooming. Here, the Greek Safer Internet Centre provides some tips for parents and carers to help tackle this phenomenon.
Child Focus and the private sector raise awareness for a secure and responsible use of internet among children
During the lockdown period, Child Focus noticed a considerable increase in online safety issues among children. In a year, non-consensual sexting and grooming cases increased by 50 per cent, and cases of sexual extortion of minors have doubled. Therefore, several companies have decided to include a commitment to a “better internet” in the goals of their corporate social responsibility.
ON-LINE ZOO, a new series of short stories about online safety
The resource catalogue of the CZ.NIC association has recently been expanded with the publication of a new digital series of short stories, ON-LINE ZOO - Poems. This collection of playful poems was created as an extension of the book ON-LINE ZOO, originally created by the Austrian Safer Internet Centre and translated into Czech, which introduces children of pre-school and earlier school grades to the most common risks associated with the use of the internet. The original texts were turned into poems by Libor Manda, project manager of the Czech Safer Internet Centre.
Save the Children Finland publishes new data on online grooming for sexual purposes
Save the Children Finland’s new report on online grooming for sexual purposes is now available in English. The report, “Grooming in the eyes of a child – a report on the experiences of 11−17-year-old children on online grooming”, is based on answers from 1,762 children, gathered in February and March 2021.
Greece raised awareness for a better internet on #SID2023
More than 30,000 students from all educational levels across the country participated in the festivities organised by the Greek Safer Internet Centre (SIC) for Safer Internet Day 2023 – and thousands more set up small celebrations in their classrooms with material provided by the Greek Safer Internet Centre, sending then their creations to the SIC.
