About the organisation
Betternet, the Belgian Safer Internet Centre, brings together media literacy, prevention, support and child protection to help every child in Belgium participate confidently and safely in the digital world. Its approach combines protection with empowerment, placing children’s rights, dialogue and critical thinking at the heart of its work.
Coordinated by Child Focus, the consortium brings together Média Animation and Mediawijs (IMEC), with the Conseil supérieur de l’éducation aux médias (CSEM) and Medienzentrum as associated partners. Medienzentrum’s participation extends the partnership to Belgium’s German-speaking community, strengthening its reach across all three language communities.
With renewed European Union support, Betternet 3 (2026–2028) builds on cooperation established in 2015. Priorities include reaching underserved children and families, supporting the implementation of the Digital Services Act (DSA), and involving young people in decisions about their digital lives. Its awareness centre, helpline and hotline connect education and prevention with practical support and advocacy.
Awareness centre
Betternet helps children, parents, caregivers and professionals develop the knowledge and confidence to navigate digital life. It offers educational games, teaching materials, awareness campaigns and training for schools and non-formal education settings. Topics include privacy, cyberbullying, consent, grooming, sextortion, disinformation and the opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence.
Betternet 3 will broaden access through adapted resources and training for people insufficiently reached by conventional media literacy initiatives. This includes children with disabilities, deaf and hard-of-hearing children, young refugees, children in care, and families facing language barriers or financial hardship. Sports clubs and the professionals working in these settings will help bring media literacy closer to children’s everyday lives.
BetternetLabs connects practitioners, researchers and other stakeholders to share experience and develop new approaches. The consortium will also explore new ways to reach parents through video, social media and activities involving parents and children together. DSA awareness will help young people understand their rights, report harmful experiences and seek support.
Resources are available in Dutch and French, with German-language access being developed through Medienzentrum.
Contact and resources
The awareness centre can be contacted via this webpage or via the general number of Child Focus 116 000.
All resources are available at https://betternet.be/resources/.
Helpline
Child Focus provides free support to children, young people, parents, caregivers and professionals facing online safety concerns. These include grooming, sextortion, the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, cyberbullying and other distressing online experiences.
Specialised advisers listen without judgement, assess the situation and help identify practical next steps. Where appropriate, they work with platforms, police and other services to support the child and address harmful or illegal content. Insights from helpline cases also inform Betternet’s prevention activities and educational resources.
CyberSquad complements the telephone service with an online space where teenagers aged 12 and over can ask questions, exchange experiences and support one another. It also offers access to a chat service with Child Focus advisers.
Contact and opening times
- Telephone: 116 000 — free of charge and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
- Teen support and chat: cybersquad.be; chat availability is indicated on the CyberSquad website.
- Email: clickhelp@childfocus.org
Hotline
Child Focus operates Belgium’s civil reporting point for suspected child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Members of the public can report anonymously through imagesdabus.be or stopchildporno.be. Behind every image is a child whose rights and dignity must be protected; preventing its continued circulation is central to the hotline’s work.
Specialised analysts assess incoming reports and cooperate with the Belgian Federal Police and the international INHOPE network to support referral and removal. The hotline also receives reports from other INHOPE hotlines and contributes human analysis and classification to Project Arachnid, an international programme using automated detection technologies to help combat the circulation of CSAM.
Reporting channels
- Online reporting: imagesdabus.be | stopchildporno.be
The online reporting forms can be accessed at any time. For personal help or support, contact the Child Focus helpline on 116 000.
Youth participation
Young people are partners in shaping Betternet’s work. Through youth panels, focus groups, co-design and testing, they help identify priorities and develop resources that reflect their experiences. Betternet 3 will strengthen this participation, with particular attention to voices often missing from consultations.
Large-scale research, including Apestaartjaren in Flanders and the Génération surveys in French-speaking Belgium, informs the consortium’s understanding of children’s digital practices. Annual youth consultations under Betternet 3 will also explore how young people experience platform protection measures linked to Article 28 of the DSA, including reporting and help-seeking.
How can you get involved?
- Contact Betternet or explore the research: betternet.be | apestaartjaren.be | generation2024.be
Key successes
Betternet’s strength lies in connecting research, educational practice and frontline child protection. Examples of this work include:
- Bringing online safety into classrooms. On 19 March 2026, Child Focus’s Internet Safe & Fun programme organised 193 workshops with volunteers from 11 companies. Children aged 10–12 explored privacy, cyberbullying, sexting and online friendships through interactive activities. The programme demonstrates how trained volunteers, schools and private-sector partners can extend the reach of prevention.
- Making children’s experiences count. Apestaartjaren and the Génération surveys have established a strong evidence base on young people’s digital lives. Alongside youth consultation and tool testing, they help the consortium shape educational responses around children’s experiences and needs.
- Connecting professionals across communities. BetternetLabs and Safer Internet Day create opportunities for professionals to exchange knowledge and develop shared responses to emerging challenges. This cooperation links media education with child protection and supports more coherent messages for children and families.
- Keeping victims’ rights visible. Child Focus’s Little Lady Justice campaign called for greater awareness, prevention and justice for victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation. It also appealed to European policymakers for stronger protection of children, connecting public awareness with advocacy.
- Building a partnership across all three language communities. The inclusion of Medienzentrum in Betternet 3 is an important milestone. It creates a stronger basis for extending resources, training and participation to Belgium’s German-speaking Community.
Discover the initiatives: Internet Safe & Fun 2026 | Little Lady Justice
Key partners/promoters
The consortium combines the complementary expertise of Child Focus, Média Animation and Mediawijs (IMEC), alongside associated partners CSEM and Medienzentrum. Together, they connect child protection, media education, research and professional development across Belgium’s language communities.
Betternet works with schools, youth organisations, parent associations, social care services, researchers and organisations supporting children in vulnerable situations. Public-sector cooperation involves the authorities responsible for education, media, youth, wellbeing, justice and digital affairs, as well as law enforcement.
Cooperation with the Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunications (BIPT), Belgium’s Digital Services Coordinator, supports the project’s work on the DSA. Child Focus’s role as a Trusted Flagger strengthens the connection between frontline expertise, reporting and platform accountability.
Online platforms, telecommunications companies and other industry partners contribute to dialogue, prevention and cooperation on online safety. At the European and international level, the Insafe and INHOPE networks support knowledge exchange and collaboration with other Safer Internet Centres and hotlines.
General contact
Brussels, Belgium
Email: bbico@childfocus.org
Website: betternet.be
About the organisation
Betternet, the Belgian Safer Internet Centre, brings together media literacy, prevention, support and child protection to help every child in Belgium participate confidently and safely in the digital world. Its approach combines protection with empowerment, placing children’s rights, dialogue and critical thinking at the heart of its work.
Coordinated by Child Focus, the consortium brings together Média Animation and Mediawijs (IMEC), with the Conseil supérieur de l’éducation aux médias (CSEM) and Medienzentrum as associated partners. Medienzentrum’s participation extends the partnership to Belgium’s German-speaking community, strengthening its reach across all three language communities.
With renewed European Union support, Betternet 3 (2026–2028) builds on cooperation established in 2015. Priorities include reaching underserved children and families, supporting the implementation of the Digital Services Act (DSA), and involving young people in decisions about their digital lives. Its awareness centre, helpline and hotline connect education and prevention with practical support and advocacy.
Awareness centre
Betternet helps children, parents, caregivers and professionals develop the knowledge and confidence to navigate digital life. It offers educational games, teaching materials, awareness campaigns and training for schools and non-formal education settings. Topics include privacy, cyberbullying, consent, grooming, sextortion, disinformation and the opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence.
Betternet 3 will broaden access through adapted resources and training for people insufficiently reached by conventional media literacy initiatives. This includes children with disabilities, deaf and hard-of-hearing children, young refugees, children in care, and families facing language barriers or financial hardship. Sports clubs and the professionals working in these settings will help bring media literacy closer to children’s everyday lives.
BetternetLabs connects practitioners, researchers and other stakeholders to share experience and develop new approaches. The consortium will also explore new ways to reach parents through video, social media and activities involving parents and children together. DSA awareness will help young people understand their rights, report harmful experiences and seek support.
Resources are available in Dutch and French, with German-language access being developed through Medienzentrum.
Contact and resources
The awareness centre can be contacted via this webpage or via the general number of Child Focus 116 000.
All resources are available at https://betternet.be/resources/.
Helpline
Child Focus provides free support to children, young people, parents, caregivers and professionals facing online safety concerns. These include grooming, sextortion, the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, cyberbullying and other distressing online experiences.
Specialised advisers listen without judgement, assess the situation and help identify practical next steps. Where appropriate, they work with platforms, police and other services to support the child and address harmful or illegal content. Insights from helpline cases also inform Betternet’s prevention activities and educational resources.
CyberSquad complements the telephone service with an online space where teenagers aged 12 and over can ask questions, exchange experiences and support one another. It also offers access to a chat service with Child Focus advisers.
Contact and opening times
- Telephone: 116 000 — free of charge and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
- Teen support and chat: cybersquad.be; chat availability is indicated on the CyberSquad website.
- Email: clickhelp@childfocus.org
Hotline
Child Focus operates Belgium’s civil reporting point for suspected child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Members of the public can report anonymously through imagesdabus.be or stopchildporno.be. Behind every image is a child whose rights and dignity must be protected; preventing its continued circulation is central to the hotline’s work.
Specialised analysts assess incoming reports and cooperate with the Belgian Federal Police and the international INHOPE network to support referral and removal. The hotline also receives reports from other INHOPE hotlines and contributes human analysis and classification to Project Arachnid, an international programme using automated detection technologies to help combat the circulation of CSAM.
Reporting channels
- Online reporting: imagesdabus.be | stopchildporno.be
The online reporting forms can be accessed at any time. For personal help or support, contact the Child Focus helpline on 116 000.
Youth participation
Young people are partners in shaping Betternet’s work. Through youth panels, focus groups, co-design and testing, they help identify priorities and develop resources that reflect their experiences. Betternet 3 will strengthen this participation, with particular attention to voices often missing from consultations.
Large-scale research, including Apestaartjaren in Flanders and the Génération surveys in French-speaking Belgium, informs the consortium’s understanding of children’s digital practices. Annual youth consultations under Betternet 3 will also explore how young people experience platform protection measures linked to Article 28 of the DSA, including reporting and help-seeking.
How can you get involved?
- Contact Betternet or explore the research: betternet.be | apestaartjaren.be | generation2024.be
Key successes
Betternet’s strength lies in connecting research, educational practice and frontline child protection. Examples of this work include:
- Bringing online safety into classrooms. On 19 March 2026, Child Focus’s Internet Safe & Fun programme organised 193 workshops with volunteers from 11 companies. Children aged 10–12 explored privacy, cyberbullying, sexting and online friendships through interactive activities. The programme demonstrates how trained volunteers, schools and private-sector partners can extend the reach of prevention.
- Making children’s experiences count. Apestaartjaren and the Génération surveys have established a strong evidence base on young people’s digital lives. Alongside youth consultation and tool testing, they help the consortium shape educational responses around children’s experiences and needs.
- Connecting professionals across communities. BetternetLabs and Safer Internet Day create opportunities for professionals to exchange knowledge and develop shared responses to emerging challenges. This cooperation links media education with child protection and supports more coherent messages for children and families.
- Keeping victims’ rights visible. Child Focus’s Little Lady Justice campaign called for greater awareness, prevention and justice for victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation. It also appealed to European policymakers for stronger protection of children, connecting public awareness with advocacy.
- Building a partnership across all three language communities. The inclusion of Medienzentrum in Betternet 3 is an important milestone. It creates a stronger basis for extending resources, training and participation to Belgium’s German-speaking Community.
Discover the initiatives: Internet Safe & Fun 2026 | Little Lady Justice
Key partners/promoters
The consortium combines the complementary expertise of Child Focus, Média Animation and Mediawijs (IMEC), alongside associated partners CSEM and Medienzentrum. Together, they connect child protection, media education, research and professional development across Belgium’s language communities.
Betternet works with schools, youth organisations, parent associations, social care services, researchers and organisations supporting children in vulnerable situations. Public-sector cooperation involves the authorities responsible for education, media, youth, wellbeing, justice and digital affairs, as well as law enforcement.
Cooperation with the Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunications (BIPT), Belgium’s Digital Services Coordinator, supports the project’s work on the DSA. Child Focus’s role as a Trusted Flagger strengthens the connection between frontline expertise, reporting and platform accountability.
Online platforms, telecommunications companies and other industry partners contribute to dialogue, prevention and cooperation on online safety. At the European and international level, the Insafe and INHOPE networks support knowledge exchange and collaboration with other Safer Internet Centres and hotlines.
General contact
Brussels, Belgium
Email: bbico@childfocus.org
Website: betternet.be
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