School children to be better protected online with Internet Safety Strategy

School children to be better protected online with Internet Safety Strategy

The government has outlined an Internet Safety Strategy which aims to make the online world safer.

Announced by culture secretary, Karen Bradley, the Internet Safety Green Paper will include a new social media code of practice to see a “joined-up approach to remove or address bullying, intimidating or humiliating online content”.

It also proposes an industry-wide levy so social media companies and communication service providers contribute to raise awareness and counter internet harms.

As well as this, it puts forward that there should be support for tech and digital startups to think safety first - ensuring that necessary safety features are built into apps and products from the very start.

In the past year, almost one-fifth of 12 to 15-year-olds encountered something online that they ‘found worrying or nasty in some way’ and 64 per cent of 13 to 17-year-olds have seen images or videos offensive to a particular group.

Nearly half of adult users also say they have seen something that has upset or offended them on social media.

The Internet Safety Green Paper aims to tackle these growing dangers, while continuing to embrace the huge benefits and opportunities the Internet has brought to British citizens.

Secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport Karen Bradley said: “The Internet has been an amazing force for good, but it has caused undeniable suffering and can be an especially harmful place for children and vulnerable people

“Behaviour that is unacceptable in real life is unacceptable on a computer screen. We need an approach to the Internet that protects everyone without restricting growth and innovation in the digital economy.

“Our ideas are ambitious - and rightly so. Collaboratively, government, industry, parents and communities can keep citizens safe online, but only by working together.”

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