BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE

Taking part in the information society is essential for citizens of all age groups. The Internet provides great opportunities to improve life for all users. It has positive effects on education, the working world and economic growth. With easy digitalization and storage of information, and accessibility through a wide range of devices, the Internet has enormously increased the information resources available to people. Children and young people are often well acquainted with its applications and can benefit from its use tremendously, but they are also vulnerable. Risks and threats accompany this positive development, often in parallel to those that already exist in the offline world.

Taking measures to protect minors may help address the problem. As helpful as these measures might be, however, total reliance on protection strategies has not been effective in enabling young people to use the Internet responsibly. The best way to help them stay out of harm’s way is to empower and educate them on how to avoid or manage risks related to Internet use. Technologies can play a useful and supportive role in this area, especially where children and young people are concerned.