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Safer Internet Day is the UK’s biggest celebration and promotion of Online Safety. It is also celebrated globally by over 170 countries worldwide and takes place on Tuesday 11th February 2025.
The overall message is always ‘Together for a safer internet’ and each year there is a different theme and focus.
This year, due to the increase in online scams, the theme is ‘Too good to be true? Protecting yourself and others from scams online’.
Unfortunately, there has been a huge increase in online scams, with growing technology such as AI being used in dangerous ways.
It is therefore more important than ever to have awareness of online scams and what we can do to protect ourselves and others.
The Safer Internet Day website has a wealth of information and resources to help you get involved in Safer Internet Day this year. From quizzes, to social media toolkits and school resources.
Go to the website here and see how you can get involved!
What else can you do to keep safe online?
The four C’s
To keep ourselves safe online, it is important to think about the 4 C’s:
This is our own behaviour online and how we engage with others. We need to think about our digital footprint and what are putting out there ourselves. It is important to think about what we are saying, sharing and expressing.
It is important that we are aware of the content that we are viewing, accessing and engaging with to keep ourselves safe, happy and to protect our wellbeing.
It is very important to be aware of who we are speaking to or connecting with online. People may not be who they say they are and we should always ensure we are connecting with trusted people that we know and never sharing any personal information or images with those that we don’t.
There are many different advertisements online in order to encourage us to purchase products. It is important to be aware of our own finances to ensure we are not getting into debt or payment plans that we can not afford.
Furthermore, some of these advertisements can be scams and may seem real or disguised to look like real retailers or brands that we recognise. It is very important to be careful of online scams.
There has recently been an increase in extortion online. This means scammers are blackmailing people to force them to send money. They often begin pretending to be another young person and encourage the sharing of information or images and then use this information to blackmail someone.
Online scams is the big focus for Safer Internet Day this year!
What else can you do?
Make sure you are aware of the privacy settings on the different apps you may use and how to protect your accounts.
Make sure you have a healthy relationship with the online world and your devices. Don’t forget about the real world! Spend time with friends and family, get outdoors and enjoy different hobbies and activities.
If you do see or experience anything negative online, speak to a trusted adult and have a look at the following websites for more support!
