New website aimed at increasing internet safety for children

Australian families will be better prepared to protect children from online sex offenders, cyber bullies and scammers with the national rollout of the school-based cyber safety program – ThinkUKnow – launched by Minister for Home Affairs, Brendan O’Connor in Brisbane today.

After running the program in New South Wales, Victoria and the ACT, Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Microsoft are expanding the ThinkUKnow program to help educate children throughout Australia about cyber-safety and security.

The program involves AFP and Microsoft volunteers providing free interactive training sessions to enable parents, carers and teachers to educate children about cyber-safety and security.

AFP Commissioner Tony Negus said the Internet is a wonderful tool for both parents and children, but like any other part of life, there are some dangers.

“This program aims to open the lines of communication between parents and children about online safety,” he said. “The hope is that young people will be confident going to their parents when they have a problem online, and parents will have a better understanding of how to deal with these issues and where they can go for help.”

“The AFP will also continue to work closely with industry, government and local and international law enforcement agencies to protect children online through education initiatives and operations against online sex offenders,” he said.

Children’s rights organisation, Save the Children, says the new website takes the right approach to the safety of children on the internet.

Save the Children’s Child Rights Specialist, Dr Annie Pettitt said today, “The best way to protect children from harm is to first teach them to protect themselves.”

“Just as our approach to road safety is not to stop children crossing the road but to be aware of the dangers, we need to teach them to be aware of the risks of using the internet so they can do so safely,” she said.

Today’s launch at Brisbane’s Ithaca Creek State School marks the start of plans by the AFP, Microsoft and new partner ninemsn, to roll out the program in Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory throughout 2010.

The ThinkUKnow program originated in the UK and was founded by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre.

For further information and resources on the ThinkUKnow initiative or to register your school for a presentation, go to www.thinkuknow.org.au.