In Highland we firstly celebrated Safer Internet Day in 2009, we had lots of media coverage and sent leaflets to all Parents / Carers of pupils.It was a great way to keep ‘Internet Safety and Responsible Use’ at the forefront of people’s minds.
We’ve just discovered that 8th February 2011 is the planned date for SID 2011! What will you plan to do? Check our ‘Safer Internet Day’ page for ideas on www.highlandesafety.wordpress.com or go to the main Safer Internet Day site for further details.
In Highland, we have a partnership approach to promoting e-safety by encouraging children and young people to use new technologies safely and responsibly. This has involved a programme of education about internet safety in our school communities.
As part of our approach we would like to offer all Parents and Carers of pupils in Highland Secondary Schools advice on the use of mobile technology. We also wish to raise awareness and specifically highlight the dangers of young people finding themselves in uncomfortable or compromising situations.
Research reported by the BBC has indicated that there is an alarming increase of instances of young people receiving unwanted images / texts or sending inappropriate images of themselves. Using phones in this way has become known as ‘sexting’, which is defined as ‘the act of sending sexually explicit images, videos or messages electronically’. There are also future implications for young people who may not know that they could be breaking the law by receiving or sending such images. They also may be unaware that images may be circulated far and wide without their permission or knowledge.
Mobile Technology Advice – Questions and Answers
Owning a mobile phone for the first time can be very exciting and be seen as a step towards independence. As newer mobile phones become highly developed and internet accessible, they are more akin to a personal handheld computer which is constantly online, think about the same kinds of risks you would talk about with your child as if you had purchased a mini computer with integrated webcam.
What can I do to keep my child safe?
In purchasing a mobile phone, discuss firstly what your family boundaries might be, financially, insurance, theft and appropriate usage. This also may include not sharing their number with strangers or posting it on social networking site profiles.
Keep lines of communication open with your child to ensure that they are not afraid to tell you if they have received an image or are being pressurised to send any inappropriate photos of themselves. Remind them to report any images they receive to yourself or an adult they can trust. The Child Exploitation and Online Protection centre (CEOP) Report Abuse Button is a way of them finding out about how to report concerns too. The CEOP Report Abuse button can be found at www.thinkuknow.co.uk and on many social networking sites.
Remind them to switch off location devices such as Bluetooth® and maps that automatically update where they are. However some parents may wish, at certain times, for these devices to be kept switched on so that a young person could be located in emergency situations. Keeping Bluetooth® switched off keeps the device safe from receiving unsolicited images or videos. To prevent unauthorised use it may be advisable to use a password pin to unlock the phone to activate.
Remind them of the future consequences of pictures or text messages that can be widely distributed without permission or knowledge only to embarrassingly re-surface at a later date!
Mobile phone theft is often opportunistic and it is wise to remind them that they should not leave their phone in full view unattended. Each Highland secondary school will also have a policy on using mobile phones and this should be adhered to.
Remind them of street safety; it is important to be extra careful when walking, running, crossing roads or riding a bike whilst using music players on mobile phones, browsing the internet, chatting or texting.
What is the law regarding images and ‘sexting’?
The future costs for children who find themselves the subject of a Police investigation are potentially severe. They may find themselves charged with offences under the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 in relation to making, possession and distribution of indecent images of children.
Ultimately this may lead to them finding themselves convicted of a serious sexual offence and placed on the Sex Offender’s Register.
What about Cyberbullying?
Being targeted by Cyberbullying, which is the use of mobile phones or technology to deliberately upset someone can be very distressing. If your child receives abusive calls or messages, it is important that they do not respond. They should report this to a parent / carer, trusted adult or teacher rather than delete the message so that evidence is kept.
Cyberbullying may also involve recording/videoing events without permission and uploading them to the internet, videoing events on mobile phones may also be a good discussion point with your child.
Where can I find further help or advice?
The Child Exploitation and Online Protection centre (CEOP) has a dedicated website that is for all children, young people, professionals, parents and carers. www.thinkuknow.co.uk
You can also find out more about the Facebook ‘Report Abuse’ CEOP application here too. We recommend all Facebook users add this application to their profile.
Childnet International www.childnet.com advice and guidance and a specific section called ‘Know it All’ advice for Parents and Carers.
General mobile phone advice and safety www.mobilephonesandsafety.co.uk
Also, check with your preferred mobile phone service provider, they may have further advice and guidance on specific networks and internet access.
What should I do if I am concerned about a child?
Tell someone what your concerns are – speak to a teacher, a doctor, a social worker, a police officer or school nurse.
Phone 01463 703488
or contact the National Child Protection Line on: 0800 022 32 22
For General Enquiries e-mail:CPAdmin@highland.gov.uk
Protecting Highlands Children, for information on the work of the Highland Child Protection Committee
Northern Constabulary is urging Facebook users across the Highlands and Islands to add a new application to make them safer online.
The Force today made the ‘app’ available on its official Facebook site www.facebook.com/northern.constabulary to help protect children and young people in the Highlands and Islands.
The UK’s national law enforcement agency dedicated to child protection – the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre) – and Facebook, the biggest social networking site, have joined forces to develop the initiative.
For the first time, it will give all Facebook users in the UK – and especially those aged between 13 – 18 years – direct access to CEOP’s advice and reporting centre ‘ClickCEOP’ giving them the very latest help on online safety as well as a dedicated facility for reporting instances of suspected grooming or inappropriate sexual behaviour.
The access will be provided via an ‘app’ that users can add or bookmark so it appears on their profile, as not only a constant source of help and reassurance for them but also as a strong visual signal to their friends, family and others that they are in control online.
The Force is also using the Twitter service to provide the public with a direct link between Northern Constabulary and the public. The service will be used to update members of the public with information on road closures, advice during major incidents, appeals for information and crime prevention advice to name but a few.
You can “follow” the Force’s tweets by visiting www.twitter.com/NorthernPolice and signing up to the Twitter service if you do not do so already.
The Facebook ‘app’ http://apps.facebook.com/clickceop will be backed by a new CEOP profile – ClickCEOP – that will look to engage with young people to help raise the profile of online safety. The move is also being supported by an advertising campaign on Facebook that will encourage take up. This will include an automatic advert appearing on every profile of users aged between 13-18 years inviting them to add the app.
A Force spokesperson said: “The internet is an amazing place where we can connect with each other and have fun, but we know that young users of social networking sites can be vulnerable.
“This announcement by CEOP represents a significant step forward in keeping young people safer on Facebook and we would urge all Facebook users in Highlands and Islands to add this application. If you are a parent on Facebook, add the app and encourage your children to do so too.
“This will act as a visible deterrent to offenders and your child will receive regular online safety tips from CEOP, so you can feel reassured that they are better protected online.”
As well as adding the ClickCEOP app, there are a number of ways in which young people can stay safe when using Facebook:
* Make sure privacy settings are set to private so the only people who can see your page and information are your friends
* Some people lie about who they are online so only add friends who you know in the real world
* Block or delete people who upset you or send nasty messages
* Tell a trusted adult if you have a concern about something that has happened to you online
Jim Gamble, Chief Executive of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre said: “Today represents a huge step forward. By adding this app, Facebook users will have direct access to all the services that sit behind our ClickCEOP button and this should provide reassurance for the many parents whose teenage children use Facebook.
“We know from speaking to offenders that a visible deterrent could protect young people online. We urge all Facebook users not only to add the app, but also to bookmark it so that others can see that they’re in control online. Our dialogue with Facebook about adopting the ClickCEOP button is well documented ¿ this is a good day for child protection.”
Joanna Shields, Facebook’s Vice President for EMEA said: “Nothing is more important than the safety of our users, which is why we have invested so much in making Facebook one of the safest places on the internet.
“There is no single silver bullet to making the internet safer but by joining forces with CEOP, we have developed a comprehensive solution which marries our expertise in technology with CEOP’s expertise in online safety.
“Together we have developed a new way of helping young people stays safe online and backed this with an awareness campaign to publicise it to young users. It is only through the constant and concerted effort of the industry, police, parents and young people themselves that we can all keep safe online – whether on Facebook or elsewhere.”
CEOP’s new Facebook page will contain polls, news alerts and status updates. The page will look at topics that teenagers care about, such as celebrities, music and exams and will link these subjects to questions about online safety. The CEOP page will also give users the option to add the new ClickCEOP application.
Two pupils from Mount Pleasant Primary School, Abbie and Rebecca won first prize in a National Competition for Internet Safety Resources. As part of a Scottish Government action plan to improve internet safety a competition was launched in conjunction with Young Scot and Learning and Teaching Scotland.
Abbie and Rebecca planned, designed and made a game which would be played by primary age children. Their game was designed to promote internet safety and was a cross between Snakes and Ladders and Monopoly. Pupils would throw a dice and move round the board which was laid out like Snakes and Ladders. If they landed on a “Bad space” they would pick up an Exclamation Mark card which would give a bad example of internet safety, eg “You have given out your password to your friend, move back 2 spaces”. The Question Mark cards were good examples of internet safety eg “You have changed your password, move forward 2 spaces”.
They were overall winners on the Primary Age Group and won a Digital Flip HD video camera for the school. Mount Pleasant School was so delighted with their new camera that they bought the girls a pink USB stick for their transition to High School. Their game will be manufactured and included in a resource pack which will be distributed to schools and will be able to be viewed on the website www.scotland.gov.uk/InternetSafety
They were both delighted and hope that their game will help 7-11 year olds understand how to keep safe online.
This 10 minute video not only shows how to configure Facebook’s latest “simplified” privacy settings but but also how to customize your settings for maximum control. It also describes changes to their privacy policy.
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How to lock Google SafeSearch.
SafeSearch lets you filter sexually explicit web sites and images from your search results. You can lock your setting to the strict level of filtering using a password.
To use SafeSearch lock, go to the “Search Settings” page on Google.
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Earlier this year the Scottish Government announced the launch of an action plan and marketing campaign to improve the safety of children on the internet and prevent problems such as cyber bullying, internet fraud and online grooming, the action plan can be found here.
Part of the campaign included an ‘Internet Safety Competition’ which ran in conjunction with Young Scot and Learning and Teaching Scotland in order to find new and original resources for use in Scotland.
The Highland Council’s entry from their Education, Culture and Sport Service was chosen as overall winner in its category and will now be used as a national resource. The winning resource is a play which toured Highland secondary schools in February. ‘The Cyber Room’ performance shows the developments after four 15 year-olds meeting in an internet chat-room.
The development of the play was facilitated by Highland Council, Education, Culture and Sport Service staff. The judges were particularly impressed by how the content and tone of the performance had been developed; the number of children who had seen the play already; and their positive reaction to such challenging material.
Key messages that the play aims to convey are: the importance of using the internet responsibly; to encourage pupils think more carefully about they are talking to online; and to know where they can report someone whose behaviour online is causing them concern.
Using drama as a tool in communicating and exploring sensitive issues has proven very successful for past initiatives in Highland (such as smoking awareness, mental health and self harm awareness and careers opportunities to name a few) and as internet safety is such a pertinent and key issue for young people at the moment the Highland Council chose to use the powerful arts medium to look at issues around internet safety and cyber bullying.
Eden Court’s Education Department was approached to discuss the possibilities of developing a bespoke piece of theatre to look at the internet safety and cyber bullying, subsequently, ‘The Cyber Room’ idea was developed.
The creation of the script was informed by Internet Safety training delivered by Louise Jones, Health Promoting Schools Manager. The training was an essential part of the script development as it ensured that the piece enhanced and complimented the wider messages and training being communicated and delivered in schools for Internet Safety.
The play was offered to all 29 secondary schools in Highland. 27 schools took the play which was shown to S1 and S2 pupils (S3 to S6 pupils saw the piece in a few schools). A total of 30 performances took place with over 2,400 pupils benefiting from the performance and workshop.
An extensive evaluation took place, with all audience members and teachers asked to complete a questionnaire at the end of each performance
Pupils said that they had learned:
Teachers commented that they “…valued this as a parent and think other parents should see it”; and learned “…not to take young people’s ability to be responsible for granted”.
When asked if they thought that using drama was an effective way of communicating about issues for young people, pupils agreed:
Teachers added:
The Highland Council’s Youth Convener Magnus Monahan, has been part of the development of the strategy for all Internet Safety and Responsible Use work in Highland and fully supported the application for the Internet Safety Competition, He said: “I think the play is a very powerful way of getting across the message about the impact your online activities can have.”
Councillor Bill Fernie, Chairman of The Highland Council’s Education Culture and Sport Service Committee said: “I’m delighted to see the innovative ways our staff seek to educate young people on keeping safe online being recognised at a national level. This is a perfect example of education, leisure and arts working effectively together to create new and exciting resources. Congratulations to all involved.”
For further information please contact: Louise Jones Health Promoting Schools Manager or Lynn Johnson, Arts Links Officer tel: (01463) 702000.
Technology offers fantastic opportunities for children, young people and professionals. However, technology can be misused and this can be very painful for those who are targets of Cyberbullying.
Advice on ‘Rate My Teachers’
This is a global website where anonymous comments or ratings can be left for teachers by selecting the school where they teach. If anyone finds a comment that they find breaks the rules of the site or causes offence of any kind, you are able to remove this comment yourself immediately and it will be removed pending review. You can do this by ‘flagging’ the comment and selecting from a drop down menu why the comment does not follow the rules of the site.
You are able to do this without being a member of ‘Rate My Teachers’ or logging in to the site. In Highland, it is still important to report this to the Head Teacher who may wish to notify Cyberbullying@highland.gov.uk
A specific support facility in Highland has been set up for those children, young people and staff who may find themselves targeted by Cyberbullying. Incidents of Cyberbullying should be managed according to the Cyberbullying Guidance and by using the dedicated email address Cyberbullying@highland.gov.uk
Teacher Support Scotland also have useful advice that can be found here
All education resources for ‘Internet Safety and Responsible Use’ in Highland including educating children and young people about the consequences of Cyberbullying are promoted through this Highland E-Safety site. You may wish to look at what can be done to create a culture within the learning community where everyone is advised and understands how to use the internet safely and responsibly using some of the recommended resources.
For further information in Highland please contact:
This wordle pic is of the most common passwords used! Not hard to crack really. It’s vitally important that in any e-safety work taking place you remember to highlight the importance of password data.
Here’s a few pointers to help discussions with children and young people.
If you have any other suggestions please let us know, have you devised a lesson about this? If so, can we share your plans and evaluations using our GLOW group? This is covered in many of the CEOP resources, but why not create your own? These are the experiences and outcomes this applies to.
Health and Wellbeing – Mental, Emotional, Social and Physical Wellbeing
“I am learning to assess and manage risk, to protect myself and others, and to reduce the potential for harm when possible”.
Technologies
“By considering ways to protect technological devices, I can act safely and responsibly when selecting and using different technologies to communicate and collaborate”.
“I am developing my knowledge and use of safe and acceptable conduct as I use different technologies to interact and share experiences, ideas and information with others”.
NB Wordle is a toy for generating “word clouds” from text that you provide. www.wordle.net
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