Safer Internet Day 2006

As a result of a tragic event in my family, in which my son, being in depression, received encouragement and instructions how to commit suicide over the net, 8 years ago, which resulted shortly in his death, I decided to set up a non-profit organizatioon in Israel, called ESHNAV, translated in Hebrew to "People for Safe Internet".
We attapet to raise awareness of youth, parents, teachers, reulators to the risks and dangers over the net.

Dr. Avshalom Aderet

Declaration of the Association

Objectives

Promoting the public’s awareness of the positive and negative effects of the use of the Internet on society and its values, and for the furthering of the appropriate and safe use of the Internet.

Vision

To be a leading factor in Israel in the formation and fostering of this awareness, both in the general public and the professionals, in close cooperation with the involved factors at the national and the international levels.

Human values

The Internet can bring a significant contribution to the promotion of issues in the sphere of man and society.
The variety of the available sources of information in all spheres, the swift and efficient communication, the abolition of the geopolitical boundaries and the rapprochement of the nations, cultures and ethnical groups, and the strengthening of the relations between Israel and the Diaspora, the convenient approach to remote learning and teaching, without mediators – all this and more, shall bring an important contribution to the well-being of the individual, the progress and the advancement of society.

The wide use of the Internet has a certain social value as well.
The wide-spread use of the Internet in all spheres and the increasing number of its users has brought about on the one hand the development of technological relations (such as: the availability of the network, the speedy transfer of data and similar), and the development of the social relations on the other, which, however, along with the beneficial effects, involves innumerable risks.

Anonymity and lack of supervision have also shortcomings.
The Internet has several unique advantages: it eliminates the various logistical difficulties related to time and space: information flow is quicker, it is more accessible to all people, efficiency of the markets increases, communication within the community and between the individuals develops etc. Nevertheless, the Internet is an anonymous network, lacking supervision, which might conduct to the absolute misuse of the freedom of expression, intended to take advantage of the user not in the know, such as teenagers or customers, and to encourage unethical goals, such as hatred between nations, religions and various minority groups within the society.

In a world without fences or borders, better-defined behavioral rules are needed
The Internet is a new world with as yet undefined borders. As such it raises new challenges, related to society and its values, and all attempts to meet these challenges have failed until now.

Coping with the changes needs awareness
Taking a close look at the technological changes taking place in the sphere of Hi-Tec, owing to which the Internet has become a permanent presence in our homes, and taking a close look as well at the effects of these changes on our lives, it was suggested to set up an association with the objective to promote and cultivate the awareness of the expected changes and their effects on the society and the individual, deriving from the wide-spread use of the Internet in particular and computerized communication in general.

Objectives
In order to reach said objective the Association should implement the goals mentioned hereunder:

1. Foster and stimulate the awareness and the understanding of the public, of (the negative or positive) effects of the various uses of the Internet in relation to the individual, the group, the institutions and the society in general. (The Association does not wish to relate to the technological effects of Hi-Tec.)

2. Foster the understanding between the Internet and the professionals in the sphere of Hi-Tec and the public who is not concerned yet with the advanced technology, and study the connection between the needs of the individual and the society, and the development trends in Hi-Tec and the use of the Internet.

3. Check and understand the social significance of the use of the Internet in the following spheres:

• Changes in the employment structure and the effects on business planning and the patterns of professional advancement.
• The effects on the trade and the significance of the shifting from traditional trading to electronic trading
• The effects on the rights of the individual and the protection of their physical and electronic assets.
• The ethical and legal issues of the use of the Internet.

The activities of the Association

The Association shall carry out its activities in the following spheres:

Conferences
The Association shall hold an annual national conference and regional conferences (meetings, workshops etc). All conferences and meetings shall be held in memory of Eran Aderet.

Internet sites
Building of an Internet site serving as a platform for its activities and the exchange of opinions on various issues.

Information and education
• Development of information programs for the elementary and the high-schools, and the non-formal education as well
• Distribution of information on the technological means capable to minimize the Internet-related risks
• Use of the means of communication to increase awareness of the general public of the above issue
• Promotion and distribution of subject matters related to the extended use of the Internet furthering improvement of quality of life
• Establishment of an information “hot-line” to provide support, if and when needed

Legislation fostering of the obligation
• Establishment of a lobby in the Knesset with the aim to further legislation meant to impede the misuse of the Internet
• Preparing of a Convention on the issue to be signed by the Internet servers and the programming companies

Research promotion
• Fostering study and research in the sphere of the use of the Internet and its effects on society
• Examination of forecasts and research work, which might reveal the future (positive and negative) effects of new technologies.

Cooperation
• Cooperation with the domestic Hi-Tec industry for the study of the social consequences of the Internet
• Domestic and international cooperation with organizations and institutions having objectives similar to our objectives.

Posted by Eshnav Israe at 08:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (1)

Today, kids can walk around with the Internet in their pockets. The video iPod, the Sony Playstation Portable, mobile phones and PDAs can all access digital content unimaginable even during the dot com bubble. We face an unprecedented challenge to protect children from the worst of the web while directing them to the best, most trusted, quality digital content, no matter what device that content is delivered on.

We at ICRA, the Internet Content Rating Association, believe it is possible to both protect the rights of content providers to express themselves, without the need for censorship, while providing parents, teachers and other concerned adults the tools to protect children from potentially harmful or offensive material. We do this through an expertly created, content description system that allows web creators to self-label their content with a machine-readable tag or meta-data. This tag is then read by parental control filters and if the content is filtered out if it exceeds what the parents want their child to see.

Content labelling and filtering is only one part of the solution. Because the world of digital content is so vast and growing at an exponetial rate, we need a range of technical solutions that include artificial intelligence, URL block lists, word and image screening to piece together a comprehensive method to block unwanted material. We need a multitude of safety messages geared specifically for parents, for children, for teachers and for employers. And gonvernments have a legitimate role in ensuring existing laws impact on this new world without impeding the growth and innovation that has brought us such enormous benefits.

I know as a father how difficult it can be to keep up with my daughter's interest and curiousity on the web; encourgaging her to seek out and find text, photos and video for her homework projects or just for fun. I also know how just a simple slip of the keyboard or an innocent online search can take her off into areas I would never allow her to go in the "real" world. I have to find the right balance of caution and warnings while allowing her a growing freedom to reach out and discover for herself.

That's the challenge: to find the balance between fear of harm and the joy of tapping into the world's richest source of information, amusement and fun. It is an unprecedented undertaking - to find a way for governments, industry players and NGOs to work internationally to allow this new medium the room to grow, while finding the right touch of government oversight, industry self-regulation and parental involvement. Watch this space...

Posted by ICRA Europe at 07:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (1)

A place to write down your thoughts and feelings, your secret desires and hopes for the future—one that is open for anyone to read and comment on. Welcome to the Blog.

Blogs, or “weblogs” (“web” + “log”) are journals posted on the Internet. These online diaries are often hosted free of charge by companies who get money by placing click-through ads on the blog pages. What distinguishes the blog from any other web page is the format. The entries are posted in reverse chronological order, and each entry contains an area for comments from the readers. This enables topics to be discussed among the readers in an ongoing dialogue.

Blogs can be written by anyone, about anything: the school lunch, how to kill a spider, etc. The over four million bloggers leave no conversational stone unturned. Typically, a blog contains links to other blogs

The appeal of blogging to teens is natural. Blogging has become a social event. A way to reach out and connect and share ideas of a personal nature in an impersonal forum. This private diary broadcast to millions of strangers is a way of getting attention while hiding behind a computer. It’s not surprising that blogging has so quickly become identified as a “teen” pastime.

The promise of teen blogging is that it nurtures important social skills, fills a need for self-expression, and builds writing ability. And most of the time it does just that. Careless blogging, on the other hand, can be dangerous in many ways.

The online sexual predator over time can glean enough information from a blog to put together a personal profile of the author. School name, names of friends, teachers, physical addresses, street names, town—anything and everything can be used by the sexual predator. While the teen posts what s/he thinks are innocent details, s/he is in reality drawing a roadmap to her house. S/he is lulled into a false sense of security by what s/he sees as the anonymity of the Internet.

This perceived anonymity gives rise to the other dangers of blogging: cyber bullying and slander. Without the physical immediacy of an audience, teen bloggers are less likely to see and understand the damage their words can do. Schoolyard gossip finds its way into a blog, and the target of the gossip suffers at the hands of unknown online assailants.

Blogs can be used to the same effect by cyber bullies. The damage done by cyber bullying cannot be overstated—just recently Ryan Halligan, a 13-year-old from New Hampshire, committed suicide as a result of cyber bullying. Teens, especially when it comes to blogs, sometimes forget that anything posted on the Internet has an unintended audience, and therefore, unintended consequences.

In the United States two sites have been incredibly successful within kids and teens market – www.myspace.com and www.facebook.com. MySpace is a phenomenon in America, allowing teens and adults to create their own space and encourage personal expression though pictures, diaries and the like. Of particular interest is the ability one has on these sites to have MySpace “buddies” – a list of other MySpace participants whose picture and link can be seen. Like the AOL “Buddy Lists” children feel the more buddies they have, the more popular they are. Often teens are allowing just about anyone to become their buddy solely for bragging rights. Sexual predators and others know this and are ready to take advantage of it.

'The Children’s Online Protection and Privacy Act’ (COPPA) is an American federal law which requires, among other things, that no personal information maybe collected by those under 14 years of age. In its rules MySpace states that children under 14 should “Go Away.” Yet it is incredibly easy to state you are of age when you sign-up – there is no other verification. Here at i-SAFE we continually get calls and e-mails from parents of children far under COPPA’s requirements that have had active MySpace pages with pictures and references to their ages. American schools have become aware of the blog phenomenon and the majority of schools implementing the i-SAFE K-12 curriculum do not allow access to these sorts of sites on their computers.

We speak to many kids and teens here in the United States that do not realize anyone can access their private sites on MySpace; their belief is that they have to direct someone to their page. The naivety inherent in children is something we all respect and protect as long as possible – perhaps with all the good the Internet does, the loss of that precious commodity is perhaps the worst it can do. In fact, most parents have no idea of what blogging is or if their children are a part of it. While kids and teens have the technical skills their parents lack, they can not match that savvy with the maturity needed these days – here at i-SAFE we call that the real digital divide. The following link illustrates that this dilemma faces all sorts of parents, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11080181/, not to mention situations like this http://www.middletownpress.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=16080596&BRD=1645&PAG=461&dept_id=10856&rfi=6

The Internet has brought such positive aspects to kids and teens across the globe – a world of information and connections we could never have imagined, yet the perils of the Internet are increasingly dangerous. The advent of the Blog is a true testament to this duality.

Please visit www.isafe.org to the work of i-SAFE's Internet Safety Education and Outreach program, or contact blay@isafe.org regarding i-SAFE in your nation.

Posted by iSafe at 06:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (1)

The internet as we see it today has given us wonderful benefits, the way we learn, communicate, learn, shop and are entertained. But with anything else that gives us so much, there are those that would look to use it for criminal purposes. As we continue to learn how to protect ourselves from strangers and thieves in the physical world we can do the same in the online world. There are 3 important things that we have to remember in order to stay safe online. First: We need to get and keep our computer systems secure and up to date. Criminals will take advantage of computers that do not have security software installed such as firewalls, anti-virus, spy ware and privacy protection programs. Also most computer operating systems and programs require "bugs" to be fixed by updating software. These are called security "patches." These patches as well as the updates for anti-virus, spyware etc. can all be set to do an automatic update. This means whenever you are logged in they will check for updates and install them protecting your computer. Second: It is also very important to be careful what web sites you visit, what you may download and what attachments you open. Many criminals depend on the fact that they can trick you into giving out personal information, installing hidden programs on your computer and stealing it or sending you to web sites that are fake but look like the real web site. To protect yourself from this, be very careful what web sites you go to, use sites like www.trustwatch.com to check web sites. Do not open attachments even if they come from someone you know unless you are expecting them. Even then contact that person to make sure that they really sent it to you.

Third: Blogging (such as we all are doing here!) is a great way to communicate, and learn really interesting things about other people. We need to make sure that we do not give personal information that would provide criminals with so much information that they can take advantage of you, your family or friends. One way criminals take advantage of people is to collect information on you and use that to make you believe that they are someone that is a friend or someone you can trust. This type of activity is known as "Social Engineering" Have a parent or other trusted adult review the blog, it is not only a safety issue it is a fun way to share strories with family. As a parent or techer, it is very important to talk with the children and make sure they understand the boundries on what is safe to blog and what may not be. Also to ALWAYS understand that if someone makes them uncomfortable online, to report it to a parent or teacher just like we would in the physical world.

The internet is such a great technology and it will become more and more a part of our lives, learning and following some simple rules about safety and security will insure that the good parts of the internet will be far better then the bad parts of it. Online computing can be fun, enjoyable and safe but the safety begins at home.

Posted by Howard Schmidt, Former White House Security Adviso at 06:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Some interesting phrases by the “teachers” (schoolchildren) of the Public lesson on internet safety held in Lithuania.

Mantas: “I have spend approximately 26000 hours in chats – I really know everything”.

Tomas: “The price you win, after a pop-up appears showing that you are the lucky 10000th visitor and all you need to do is give an e-mail, is a great bunch of nice spam!”

Einis: “Even 3 month babies have blogs nowadays. I didn’t know how to write at that time”.

Tomas: "What is "spam"? It is offers, suggestions, offers, suggestions, offers....to increase potency, to buy cheap medicine, to invest in stocks..."

More about the event: More about the event: http://blog.eun.org/insafe/2006/02/lithuania_schoolchildren_teach_1.html#more

Posted by Bite Lietuva at 04:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

The Media Awareness Network’s (MNet) Young Canadians in a Wired World Phase II research project, the most comprehensive study of its kind in Canada, reveals that young Canadians are more connected than ever, and at a surprisingly early age. But contrary to the earlier stereotype of the isolated and awkward computer nerd, today’s wired kid is a social kid.

The key findings of the research, composed of focus groups (children and youth aged 11 to 17) and a national student survey (more than 5,200 children and youth from Grades 4 to 11) revealed that an astonishing 94 percent of young people access the Internet from home. Kids as early as Grade 4 rely on the Internet to explore social roles, stay connected with friends and develop their social networks. New friends made online are typically a friend of a family member or a friend of a friend in the real world.

The social nature of the Internet is also evidenced in the ways in which kids will assume online identities to try out new social roles. Almost 60 percent of kids pretend to be someone else online at some point, mostly to see what it would be like to be older, or a different gender or to flirt with other people. The Net gives them the freedom to try on different personalities and to explore their sexuality away from the supervision of parents or teachers.

Individuation and separation from parents as well as exploration of sexual intimacy are normal developmental tasks of adolescence. From the kids’ point of view, the Net allows them to do so in a safe environment, with relatively few consequences. But the safety of these interactions is built upon the assumption that kids remain anonymous. Providing guidance to children to understand and recognize potential risks - like privacy invasions, cyber bullying, and misinformation - is essential part of ensuring a positive experience for young users. MNet will use these findings in the development of education programs aimed at educators, students and the general public.

Posted by Media Awareness Network at 04:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBacks (0)

Below you will find photos from Safer Internet Public lesson which took place on the 31st floor of the Europa sky-scraper in Vilnius. The first public lesson in Lithuania on Internet safety started at noon. Schoolchildren and teachers changed places: the pupils were presenting the potential of innovations such as ‘blogs’ (Internet diary), ‘chats’ (live conversations) and others that are the most popular among children and youth, explaining how to use them safely, and the teachers together with parents were listening. The public lesson was attended by approximately 100 teachers and parents and even more were watching an online broadcast. The event attracted a lot of media attention. More about the event http://blog.eun.org/insafe/2006/02/lithuania_schoolchildren_teach_1.html#more

Posted by Bite Lietuva at 04:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (1)

Cuando convencionalmente hablamos de Pornografía Infantil muchas veces no tomamos conciencia de lo que verdaderamente se trata. La diferencia entre pornografía y pornografía infantil no se reduce a la edad de los protagonistas.
La Pornografía Infantil es el retrato de un delito aberrante. Los que la producen, comercializan, distribuyen, facilitan y consumen son los responsables de la explotación sexual de millones de niños en el mundo entero.

Nunca hay que perder de vista de que detrás de cada imagen, video o audio hay un niño, niña o adolescente, e inclusive bebes, que ha sido abusado sexualmente durante la producción de ese material y una y otra vez que esa imagen es vista y/o utilizada para la gratificación sexual de un adulto. No solo se les ha robado su infancia sino que les han dejado una marca que difícilmente cicatrice mientras siga circulando por la red la prueba de la vergüenza, no la de ellos sino la de todos nosotros que como sociedad no los protegió y cuidó como le correspondía.

Existen otras formas de Explotación Sexual Comercial Infantil: Explotación Sexual Infantil en el Ámbito del Turismo (Turismo Sexual), Explotación Sexual Infantil Tradicional (Prostitución Infantil), Trata infantil con fines de explotación sexual y Espectáculos sexuales o eróticos. Cada una de ellas tiene sus propias características pero guardan una estrecha relación entre sí y muchas veces una depende de la existencia de la otra o es consecuencia de otra.

Todas las formas de Explotación Sexual Comercial Infantil existían mucho antes de la aparición de Internet. Entonces, ¿por qué hoy ponemos el acento en la Red de Redes? Simplemente por que este fantástico medio de comunicación, cada día más masivo, ha posibilitado que estas formas aberrantes de Maltrato Infantil se expandan y adquieran una dimensión que aún no es posible cuantificar ni imaginar sus límites.

Por otra parte las nuevas tecnologías: telefonía celular, cámaras web, etc. facilitan la captación de nuevas víctimas y dan cuenta de un nuevo fenómeno que es el acoso virtual (Cyberbullying) que ya ha llevado al suicidio a varios adolescentes.

No se trata aquí de demonizar a Internet ni de negar el avance de la humanidad gracias al surgimiento de las nuevas tecnologías, de lo que se trata es de tomar conciencia de que no habrá ningún futuro sino protegemos a nuestros niños.

Hoy más que nunca es necesario aunar criterios y esfuerzos para combatir este flagelo, cada uno desde su rol puede (y debe) tomar partido. Si bien es necesario que todos los países posean un cuerpo legal que contemple estos nuevos delitos y fuerzas policiales capacitadas y con los recursos necesarios para combatirlos, como así también un sector privado comprometido que impida que sus productos y/o servicios sean utilizados para facilitar la producción, distribución o difusión de Pornografía Infantil u otras formas de Explotación Sexual Comercial Infantil a través de Internet o las nuevas tecnologías, es fundamental promover la prevención con base en la información. Tanto los padres, docentes, funcionarios y los medios de comunicación debemos tomar conciencia que existen nuevos peligros que acechan a nuestros chicos. Por último, es imprescindible adoptar una postura inflexible frente a este tema: todo hecho que vulnere los Derechos de los Niños, Niñas y Adolescentes debe ser denunciado, por nuestros niños y por nuestro futuro.

Riesgos a los que están expuestos los niños, niñas y adolescentes usuarios de TIC

1. Exposición no deseada a material sexualmente explícito: Los niños que navegan solos en Internet, en equipos no protegidos por filtros, acceden con mucha facilidad a los sitios pornográficos, la mayoría de las veces sin que haya sido su intención hacerlo.¿Por qué sucede esto?

Cuando se diseña una página web los programadores incluyen “meta-tags” (código que determinan no solo lo que será visible en la pantalla sino aquellos elementos que utilizaran los motores de búsqueda), los más usados son: título de la página, contenido y palabras claves. Cuando se realiza una búsqueda en Internet, los resultados arrojados muestran parte de estos meta-tags: el título de la página y un párrafo descriptivo. Esto gracias, entre otras cosas, a las palabras claves.

Cuando se realiza el llamado “marketing malicioso” para aumentar la cantidad de visitas a una página y obtener mejor posición para la venta de publicidad, se coloca en dichas palabras claves, información que no tiene nada que ver con los contenidos reales del sitio, con el único fin de ser listados en otro tipo de búsqueda. La mayoría de los sitios pornográficos o de contenido adulto incluyen como palabras claves términos de uso frecuente por parte de los niños y adolescentes como, por ejemplo, todos los dibujos animados existentes. De esta forma el niño cree estar entrando a una página de su personaje favorito y se encuentra material altamente perturbador para su edad.

Otra forma de ingresar a ellas es a través de “links” o enlaces que poseen muchos sitios donde se bajan juegos o recursos codiciados por los chicos: música, protectores de pantallas, programas, gif (iconos animados), etc. o a través de spam o correo basura que se envían indiscriminadamente promocionando páginas pornográficas con imágenes incluidas.

No debemos descartar que muchos niños, especialmente adolescente, puedan buscar este tipo de material por curiosidad, lamentablemente aún no se ha podido medir el impacto en los niños expuestos a estas imágenes que incluyen muchas veces una fuerte dosis de violencia.

2. Captación de niños. La posibilidad de contactar niños y niñas libres de la vigilancia de sus cuidadores ha hecho de Internet y las nuevas tecnologías una forma moderna de captación de victimas. Escudados en la posibilidad de inventar múltiples identidades se presentan ante ellos como pares para ganar su confianza. El anonimato los protege ante la posibilidad de ser descubiertos.

Muchas veces el objetivo final es el encuentro con el niño y la potencial explotación en la pornografía, otras veces sólo queda en el acoso virtual.

Los explotadores utilizan diferentes plataformas que brindan las nuevas tecnologías para captar potenciales víctimas; son aquellas que los niños, niñas y adolescentes utilizan con mayor frecuencia: salas de Chat, fotologs, Messenger, E-mail, juegos en red, sitios de encuentros personales, mensajes de texto (telefonia celular), etc.

Una vez establecida la relación “amistosa” suelen enviarle pornografía, primero adulta y luego infantil para:

1)Des-sensibilizar o neutralizar posibles preconcepciones del niño o niña respecto al tema.
2)Reducir su resistencia o inhibiciones respecto al sexo
3)Evaluar la reacción de las posibles víctimas.
4)Fomentar el sentimiento de culpa para lograr complicidad y silencio.

Creadas las condiciones apropiadas para una posible situación de abuso sexual promueven un encuentro físico / personal que por lo general es registrado a través de fotografías y videos. Aunque no se llegue a concretar el encuentro físico, los explotadores pueden conseguir imágenes del niño o niña a través de E-mail o cámara web.

Otro lugar en el que los pedófilos-explotadores captan a las víctimas es en los ciber-café, lamentablemente usados muchas veces como “guarderías” por padres y madres.

3. Ciber-intimidación (Cyberbullying): Proviene del entorno escolar o social del niño por parte de pares que a través de email anónimos, mensajeria instantánea (Messenger) o mensajes de texto por celulares, agreden o amenazan a sus victimas. En casos extremos toman fotos de los niños, niñas y adolescentes en situaciones vergonzantes o las modifican con programas específicos para ridiculizarlos y/o humillarlos.

Los niños que son intimidados experimentan un sufrimiento real que puede interferir con su desarrollo social y emocional, al igual que con su rendimiento escolar. Algunas víctimas de intimidación han llegado al suicidio.

4. Acoso sexual: Proposiciones para consumar relaciones sexuales virtuales o reales, indagación sobre aspectos íntimos, etc. son habituales en los espacios en los que los niños interactúan con extraños en las salas de Chat, mensajería instantánea, juegos en Red, etc.
En la encuesta que lleva adelante el Consejo Nacional de Niñez, Adolescencia y Familia sobre hábitos y costumbres del uso de Internet en adolescentes entre 12 y 17 años ante la pregunta ¿Alguna vez te sentiste incómodo navegando en la red, por qué?, las niñas son las que mayoritariamente han reconocido acoso a través de la red. Así, tenemos a continuación algunas de las respuestas:
-Porque personas que no conocía me preguntaron cosas personales (13 años)
-Porque muchas veces dicen cosas asquerosas que hasta a mi me da vergüenza decirla o escribirlas (12 años)
-Porque desconocidos se meten en tu MSN y preguntan tus datos (17 años)
-Porque un chico se masturbaba frente a la webcam (12 años)

5. Otros Riesgos: Posibilidad de acceder a sitios que hacen apología de la bulimia y anorexia, droga, racismo, nazismo, violencia y suicido.

Lic. Inda Klein

La autora es investigadora del Consejo Nacional de Niñez, Adolescencia y Familia (Argentina).
Acceda a algunos de sus trabajos publicados en www.iin.oea.org/proy_trafico_ninos_internet/avances.2005.pdf y http://www.conaf.gov.ar/pornografia/index.html

Posted by Bernie Lajmanovich, ASIBA at 03:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Bienvenidos a “Safer Internet Day 2006”, desde A.S.I.B.A, Asociación de Seguridad Informática de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, República Argentina. Hoy es el día donde todos aquellos que combatimos la distribución y comercialización mundial de material de pornografía infantil por Internet, nos abrazamos gracias a la tecnología que permite hermanar a todas las culturas del planeta en forma simultánea.

Desde Argentina lanzamos el desafío para lograr que no sea solo un día, deben ser los 365 días al año si queremos concientizar a la humanidad toda, al hombre, la mujer, al padre, la madre, la familia, los docentes, al niño, que la pornografía infantil es el resultado NO solo de un negocio millonario sino de la desprotección a la que exponemos a nuestros niños cuando no cumplimos con nuestra responsabilidades, olvidando que somos nosotros quienes tienen el poder de evitarles el acceso a los sitios de Internet donde esto se propaga día a día, alterando los valores de nuestra sociedad.

Internet se sustenta en la defensa de la libertad, en el libre acceso a la información y al conocimiento, pero esta cualidad debe protegerse instaurando el discernimiento de uso debido, en base al criterio de “libertad con conciencia”.

Debemos unirnos y luchar fervientemente si pretendemos tener un mundo con hombres íntegros, con una infancia de pleno derecho, porque si no actuamos hoy, este tipo de abusos contra la inocencia y vejaciones contra los derechos de la niñez, seguirán creciendo y se volverán cotidianas. No podemos acostumbrarnos a esto.

Nuestra sociedad está expuesta a un creciente fenómeno de inseguridad y carencia de valores morales, donde el acceso irrestricto a material de pornografía y/o pseudo pornografía infantil en Internet, durante la última década, ha planteado desafíos adicionales al problema. La pornografía infantil, el turismo sexual y el abuso de menores se han convertido en una preocupación genuina. Existen miles de websites que ofrecen material de pornografía y/o pseudo pornografía infantil y todo tipo de servicios sexuales de menores de edad, lo cual indica una clara necesidad de un análisis completo y minucioso de la problemática y un llamado político para la búsqueda de soluciones.

Es necesario sumar esfuerzos para colaborar con la acción mundial de lucha contra el abuso de menores, mejorando las leyes, expandiendo el conocimiento y los recursos, mejorando la coordinación entre los funcionarios que formulan las políticas y quienes están a cargo del cumplimiento de las mismas y de aquellos que desde nuestras organizaciones podemos actuar internacionalmente para el fortalecimiento de nuestra lucha por la “defensa de los derechos de los niños”.

Trabajando juntos como defensores y profesionales (desde una voluntad política), podremos mejorar nuestra capacidad para proteger la inocencia y así actuar contra quienes se aprovechan de la misma, para satisfacer sus desviados deseos sexuales. Para lo cual será necesario:

• Desarrollar estructuras policiales dedicadas a la obtención de pruebas para informar sobre la metodología y responsables de los ilícitos, entendiendo el desafío que significa reconocer las falencias de las actuales estructuras policiales e investigativas.

• Facilitar la cooperación operativa entre las fuerzas de seguridad (nacionales e internacionales) y las organizaciones no gubernamentales (ONG).

• Facilitar la cooperación para la armonización legislativa y de procedimientos de las estructuras legales a nivel internacional.

La “Asociación de Seguridad Informática” desarrolló un programa que plantea claramente los mecanismos de investigación en “Inteligencia Informática” necesarios para luchar contra la explotación, la pornografía y todo tipo de abuso sexual con menores de edad, estableciendo bajo medios fehacientes las evidencias para la investigación y detención de los responsables de este tipo de delito. A su vez estamos presentando a diversos países de Latinoamérica proyectos para la promulgación de leyes, que ofrezcan un marco jurídico para poder actuar con mayor eficiencia.

Estamos en el siglo XXI, tomemos conciencia de que juntos somos más, que juntos podremos, no dejemos que esta pelea sea ganada por aquellas mentes enfermas o delincuentes sin ningún tipo de escrúpulos. Somos nosotros los responsables de combatir este flagelo, tenemos las herramientas, y sobre todo, tenemos hijos por los cuales luchar. Defendamos la inocencia, como base de los sueños, por un mundo mucho mejor.

Martín Horacio Trabucco
Presidente
Asociación de Seguridad Informática

Posted by Bernie Lajmanovich, ASIBA at 03:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (7) | TrackBacks (0)

Agradecemos al C.O.N.A.F por gentilmente cedernos el siguiente material.

A continuación ofrecemos un extracto de las conclusiones de los talleres participativos “Navegar seguro” que organizan el Consejo Nacional de Niñez, Adolescencia y Familia y que se llevan a cabo en distintas ciudades del país. Durante el taller los chicos reflexionan e identifican los riesgos en el uso de las nuevas tecnologías. Pero lo más importante: los chicos son los protagonistas y responsables de elaborar una serie de tips para mejorar la experiencia de sus pares en la red y se animan también a hacer recomendaciones a los padres.

Sobre enviar fotos por Internet:
*No creas en mensajes ilusorios. Ten precaución al leer estos mensajes y piensa en las consecuencias.
*Nunca mandes fotos por Internet a gente desconocida, ni des tus datos personales, porque corres el riesgo que se publiquen en páginas pornográficas o en toda la red.
*Si alguien que conociste en la red te invita a que se conozcan en persona, no vayas solo al encuentro
*No confíes en lo que te dicen en el chat, ya que las personas pueden no ser sinceras, corres el riesgo de encontrarte con sujetos que no son como se describían, o que tienen malas intenciones.
*Ten cuidado con el horario y el lugar de la cita.
*Si alguien te invita a posar a cambio de dinero, no lo hagas, puedes ser abusado sexualmente, filmado o fotografiado, para que luego suban tu imagen a la red. Además corres el riesgo de ser secuestrado, explotado, maltratado o asesinado.
*Desconfía de regalos de desconocidos y de amistades que surgen de un interés material.

Sobre posar frente a una cámara web
*Cuando la persona con la que estás conectada te pida que poses en forma provocativa o sin ropa frente a tu cámara web, tienes que cortar la conversación, eliminar el contacto y contarle a una persona mayor para que actúe al respecto.
*Solo hay que usar la webcam con gente conocida.

Recomendaciones de chicos para padres
*Los padres no deben usar el cyber como guardería.
*Los chicos deben concurrir a un cyber de confianza.
*Se debe prestar más atención para que la pornografía en video no llegue a los niños.
*Es necesario mejorar la calidad de los filtros y los sistemas de seguridad en contra de la pornografía.
*Se debe informar a los niños sobre estos peligros de acuerdo a la edad de los mismos.
*Los adultos deben compartir tiempo con los chicos frente a la pc. Deben controlarlos mientras chatean o desarrollan alguna otra actividad en la red.

Posted by Bernie Lajmanovich, ASIBA at 03:15 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

There are many people working hard in the UK to ensure that the internet safety messages are heard. It seems clear that children are the key. Confident with blogging, IM, chat and all things internet based, they embrace the new technologies seeing them as an exciting way to communicate and aren’t afraid to have a go. Children in our schools frequently know more about modern communication technologies than those who teach them and this is particularly true in primary schools.

We have a duty to educate not only children about the internet but also their parents and carers. Research has shown us that children can easily be lured into a false sense of security and too many feel that it can never happen to them…

In the UK we need to make better use of the resources and expertise that we have. Someone needs to take responsibility to ensure that everyone in every school understands the dangers and how to protect children from them. Internet Literacy should be a part of the curriculum.

In the past, every child was made aware of “stranger danger” and what to do, indeed, parents expected their children to learn about this in school. Internet Safety must be the stranger danger of the 21st century and we must realise this quickly. We need to have a cohesive strategy that everyone can understand, different departments with their own initiatives don’t work and too many people are not getting the message. Government understand the issues and now need to join up their thinking to deliver this important message to everyone.

Posted by Semley Primary School at 03:00 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) operates the only INTERNET ‘hotline’ in the UK for reporting potentially illegal images on the web.

Working in partnership with Police, Government, the internet and mobile industries, the IWF provides this free service for the general public which is aimed at minimising the availability of this content to protect internet consumers.

What do we mean by illegal images on the web?
This means images and in some cases text, which you see or may be exposed to, that contains any of the following:

• Child abuse images (also known as ‘child pornography’)
  
• Criminally obscene content which means images featuring acts of ‘extreme’ sexual activity
  
• Content (words and images) which may incite racial hatred by reference to skin colour, race, nationality, or ethnic origin

Don’t ignore it, report it!

If you genuinely stumble across such images or are inadvertently exposed to them you must report them to the IWF or the police.

You must not deliberately seek out potentially illegal child abuse images because purposely viewing them is a serious criminal offence.

Why should I report these images?
Reports from the public enable us to work with our partners at home and abroad to combat this content and where possible have it removed and those responsible for publishing the images investigated. This makes the internet a safer place for everyone.

Child abuse images reflect the real abuse of a child and reports to the hotline might help the authorities to trace and rescue a young victim from further abuse.

How do I report?
Go to the IWF website www.iwf.org.uk and complete the step-by-step form.
The form is easy to navigate and reports can be submitted anonymously.

What about other suspicious or criminal activity online?
The IWF is unable to take reports or help with any other queries that fall outside of the 3 categories listed above.

For more information, please see our website

Posted by Internet Watch Foundation at 03:00 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Internet muutub üha olulisemaks meie igapäevaelus. Internet võimaldab lihtsalt, kiiresti ja tasuta suhelda sõpradega üle terve maailma, lisaks leida uusi tuttavaid, maksta makse, lugeda uudiseid, kuulata muusikat, osta tarbekaupu ja palju muud. Internet on loonud palju uusi võimalusi, kuid sellega kaasnevad ka ohud, millest peaksid teadlik olema.

Interneti kasutamine on samuti tarbimine. Sa teed pidevalt valikuid – milliseid lehti külastada, milliseid programme installeerida jne.

1.Millest tunned ära usaldusväärse internetikaupluse?

2.Kõige probleemsemad on juhtumid, kus internetikauplus ei täida tarbija tellimust, mille eest ta on tasunud ning tarbija ei saa kauplusega ühendust st kaupluse telefonidele ning ka e-kirjadele ei vastata. Kas sinu või mõne sinu tuttavaga on midagi analoogset juhtunud ja kuidas käitusid edasi?

3.Sageli esineb juhtumeid, kus tarbija ei saa tellitud kaupa kätte ning kaupleja tunnistab enda viga, kuid ei tagasta tarbijale ka kauba eest tasutud raha. Võlaõiguse seaduse kohaselt peab sellisel juhul tarbijale tagastama kauba eest tasutu viivitamata, kuid mitte hiljem kui 30 päeva jooksul. Kas oled sattunud sellisesse olukorda ja milline oli lahend?

4.Sageli arvatakse, et interneti jututoad on loonud uue inimestevahelise suhtlemise viisi. Internetisõpra saad pidada oma parimaks sõbraks”, sest ta on lõbus, huvitav, erineb kõigist teistes, talle saab endast kõike rääkida, ta mõistab sind ja sina teda. Kuidas suhelda virtuaalselt nii, et see oleks ka ohutu?

Posted by Karin Rits, Communications Dept, Ministry of Econo at 02:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Paul Durrant, of the Internet Service Providers Associaltion of Ireland (ISPAI) and of Hotline.ie says

Society needs mechanisms which can come into play when, despite all the awareness programmes and precautions, things go wrong.

Criminals and paedophiles will always try to exploit whatever opportunities are available to them; no matter how many have been caught using these in the past. Their use of the Internet is no exception. The Garda Síochána (police) are responsible for the investigation of crime in Ireland, both in the physical and cyber worlds, to find the perpetrators so they may be brought to account before the courts. However, if they did not have public support in the physical world and crimes were not brought to their attention, their task would be next to impossible.

Similarly, suspected crimes on the Internet must be reported if law enforcement agencies are to have any chance of apprehending the perpetrators. Responsible Internet service providers, such as the members of the ISPAI, also want to remove illegal content from their services, to make it a safer place for their customers – particularly children. They want to dissuade people from misusing their networks and, within the framework of appropriate legal safeguards, assist the police in their investigations so that they can apprehend those who insist on doing this.

The trouble is that the Internet is so vast and so trans-national that no one can be aware of what is going on over the Internet. Privacy of legitimate Internet users is also a very important right that ISPs are keen to respect. ISPs are defined by law as “mere conduits” for the content they deliver on behalf of their customers. However, once we have been given reasonable notification of the existence of criminally illegal content, we are obliged to remove it from public access. ISPs can not monitor the networks they provide as if they were some form of self-appointed censorship authority, judge and jury wrapped into one.

That is why you, the users of the Internet, must assist ISPs and police by reporting content and activities you may encounter while using the Internet and which you suspect to be illegal.

The ISPAI funds and operates the www.hotline.ie service which, along with its international counterparts, plays a vital role in providing this service for the public. The Hotline acts as a clearing house. It accepts reports, tries to access and assess the content according to Irish law. If it is illegal, the Hotline will try to ascertain the location of the Internet content or communication and forward it for action to the appropriate jurisdiction. If it is in Ireland, the Hotline notifies member ISPs and the Gardaí simultaneously. If, as is the case in the vast majority of reports received by www.hotline.ie, it is located outside Ireland it is swiftly forwarded to the appropriate jurisdiction. This is possible due to a worldwide network of Hotlines called INHOPE (www.inhope.org), which ensures operational standards, government and police support and currently has members in 23 countries. ISPAI also contributes to the cost of running INHOPE. Where the location is determined to be in a country without an INHOPE Hotline, the report is forwarded to the Gardaí so it may be routed to Interpol. While the police investigations may take a long time, the rapid removal of illegal content achieved in many cases, is a major bonus of the Hotline network. It disrupts the activities of paedophiles and other criminals and it curtails the distribution of images of child abuse over the Internet, making it less likely that you or your children will encounter them online. One key driver for INHOPE Hotlines around the world, is the belief that their activities help to reduce the number of children being victimised to serve the demands of this illegal and socially unacceptable trade on the Internet.

If you suspect content that you encounter on the Internet to be illegal, don’t ignore it. Report it to www.hotline.ie and help responsible ISPs to curtail these and assist law enforcement internationally to bring the people who put it there in the first place and try to bring them to justice.

Paul Durrant
General Manager,
ISPAI and www.hotline.ie

Posted by National Centre for Technology in Education at 02:40 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Sharon Sheridan from Hotline.ie says -

The reality of living in Ireland (or anywhere else), has always presented dangers, both physical and psychological, to its inhabitants. It will never be completely safe for the prepared and always potentially lethal to the unwary. . . .

As responsible parents and guardians, we must assist our children to prepare themselves for the potential dangers that they will encounter in every day life. We must teach them how to avoid obvious danger, assess the risks of situations in which they find themselves and choose the appropriate action to achieve their ambitions and desires, while minimising danger to themselves and others. Our goal is have our children survive relatively unscathed to reach adulthood, where they “take over the baton” for the next generation. By that time, we should have imparted the basic principles they need to survive on their own. However, we must also have allowed them sufficient freedom to acquire life skills that can only be gained from experience. We try to obtain a balance between the extremes of over-protectionism and parental negligence. Unfortunately, vagaries of chance will always occur. Then the right balance may seem, for a particular case, to have been the wrong balance. The reality is the world is not a safe place. It never has been and it never will be.

As society evolves and new technologies are assimilated, new potential dangers appear and others decrease. Ireland has moved from being a predominantly rural agricultural society to a largely urbanised society. The incidence of children being attacked by farm animals, or getting eyes taken out by pitchforks while stacking hay, have all but disappeared but new threats emerge. Nevertheless the principles for adapting to a changed living environment haven’t altered since time immemorial. We’re great at trying to blame somebody for upsetting the status-quo, looking for “them” to do something about it but, at the end of the day, the “buck stops” with ourselves and it is the easiest and least invasive solution.

Just look at early films taken in Dublin or Belfast around 1910. People cross roads in droves in every direction, virtually oblivious of horse drawn vehicles and the occasional tram, behaviour which now seems both incredible and hilarious from our 21st century perspective. Nevertheless, within ten years, the populace had learnt to cope with the motorised transport revolution by adopting new techniques to safely cross the road. Responsible adults once aware then of the problem taught their children to look, listen and make sure the road is clear before crossing. Sadly, nearly 100 years later, some children still get killed and many are injured on Irish roads each year. However, without concerted efforts of public awareness campaigns and responsible parenting, injuries and deaths on the road would be very much greater.

The latest revolution in our living environment, the Internet, has now become as entwined in everyday life as the car. New dangers, and new versions of old dangers, lurk for the unwary in this new environment. These can impinge on adults using the Internet as much as children. For instance, new ways of applying old confidence tricks to relieve the unsuspecting of their money have appeared on the Internet. Unfortunately, there are crimes that are of particular danger to children. People with a predatory interest in children can exchange images as they have always done but more efficiently and secretively. Whereas they used to have to risk approaching children directly to groom them they can now communicate over the Internet and con children into meeting up with them secretly. Remember the crimes actually take place in the real world; the Internet is just a new and very efficient way to organise or deliver them.

People in possession of the facts, that is, Industry and Government, have a duty to make parents and guardians aware of the possible dangers of the Internet for children but must also give a sense of proportionality. Relative to the unimaginably vast amount of material and communication happening on the Internet every second, these incidents represent an incredibly small rate of occurrence. Nevertheless, if it happens to your child it is totally devastating. Now that we know that the Internet can be used in these ways, society must actively minimise these occurrences without severely curtailing freedom to use the Internet. Unfortunately, like road injuries and deaths, we will never be able to eliminate them completely. The solution is not the impossible “Big Brother” approach or by looking to politicians to get “them” to do something about it. Instead, it is about using the approaches and techniques that have always worked, those of empowering people through knowledge and teaching techniques to allow them cope with their evolving environment.

Protecting children using the Internet must be a top priority. It is awareness days like “Safer Internet Day 2006” that help to get the message across to the public that there are new safety skills for life that parents and guardians must learn themselves and also teach to their children.

Sharon Sheridan,
Analyst, www.hotline.ie

Posted by National Centre for Technology in Education at 02:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

IM is a great service where it is possible to talk to someone in real time using the Web. But young people do need to be aware of a few basic principles when they are using IM, says Áine Lynch, Childline.

The issue of Internet safety continues to be a concern for children and parents and there are constantly new services coming out that we need to ensure are used as safely as possible. Instant Messenger (IM) is one of these relatively new services now widely used by young people. IM is a great service where it is possible to talk to another person in real time using the web. There are lots of benefits to IM, the privacy of the conversation and the speed of communication to name two. However there are also risks involved in using IM that young people and parents should be aware of and know how to keep themselves safe. The 3 main danger areas with IM are:

1. When you sign up to IM services you are asked to register your details this information can then be automatically transferred to a member directory or public profile where this information is available to anybody who chooses to access it. It is important not to talk to anybody who you don’t know. Some messenger services have facilities to block messages from people who are not your friends or in your contact list.

2. When logged in to an IM service it is often only one click away from a chat room. Children can sometimes go into a public chat room without realising. Obviously all the dangers of Chat rooms now apply. When you leave IM and go into a chat room your username from IM is carried over. It is then possible for anybody who has seen you in a Chat room to approach you in IM. Again the safety tips above apply.

3. IM is a great way of communicating with friends privately but due to its privacy it is also a place for adults who want to harm children to talk to them without other people being able to see what is happening. Also due to the privacy of the service it can often be a place bullies use to bully other children. As well as the previous safety tips it is important to talk to an adult you trust if anything happens in IM or in other areas of the Internet that upset you. Good IM services should have advice of how to keep safe and suggest who you can talk to if you are upset by anything that occurs whilst on IM.

When choosing an IM service make sure that safety features are available including blocking of unknown messages and the provision of good safety advice. It is service providers responsibility to ensure their services are as safe as possible.

Posted by National Centre for Technology in Education at 02:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

More and more people are illegally sharing music over the Internet. The music industry says that it hurts musicians and is effectively 'stealing'. Those who download the music argue that it is the way of the future and that they are actually supporting music. This debate took place on Scoilnet - the portal for education in Ireland. Feel free to join in!

Irish Recording artist Mundy says . . .

"I am a recording artist and I release all my own records at the moment. I think that I may loose out on record sales due to file sharing but people are still getting to hear my music. Personally, any music that I have ever been given for free and it isn't my cuppa I'm not going to listen to it or wanna buy it. I have recently started to purchase music from I Tunes and have noticed that all you get is the album and the front cover; you can't see the lyrics or who played or produced it etc. Personally I think if you are a true fan of the music. You’d want an original copy of the album..!!
(Mundy)

Students' Comments

"I think downloading music frm the internet is a gr8 idea, because its free. Even though its bad 4 the music industry bcoz they dont make any money frm it, its still deadly. Anyway, who cares about about the music industry! They make enough money as it is! So i think music should be free!!"
(Bobbi)

"I think downloading music off the internet is a good idea because many songs on an album aren't good and its a waste of money buying the album for one song. "
(Anonymous)

"I think free internet music is a great way for any person to find any song that may intrest them even if they havn't got the money to purchase a cd made by the artist. The artist can have merchandise and concerts that can get them money and they have the support of all their fans even the ones that would not usually be able to afford a cd."
(Saz)

"I think the internet is great for downloading music - it should not be stopped and the people who think it should are crazy and out of there minds."
(Anonymous)

"In a way it is good downloading music but you have to be careful because you could get in trouble. You should pay for ALL music."
(Jean - Newcastle West)

"I think buying music off the internet is good if you pay for it. People shouldn't be burning cds and giving them away for free. People shouldn't be selling illegal music on the web."
(Orlaith O' Connor - Newcastle West Co Limerick Ireland)

"Bhíodh na CDs ró-dhaor in Éirinn. Fiú inniu táid an-dhaor ar fad 'sna siopaí agus san Eoraip tá na cinn chéanna i bhfad níos saoire..cén fath??? Is ceart íoc as íoslódail amhrán ón Web as rachfaidh an t-airgead do na ceolteoirí...ar phraghas ceart!!! Break the monopoly of the BIG Music Colmpanies agus cuir gach ar fáil, do gach duine ar phraghas íseal agus féaralta."
(Daithí Ó Murchú)

"I think the internet is bad for music because bands are not getting money when people illegally download songs""
(Shane Crossan)

"I think that artists are loosing out on a lot of money because of the net"
(Michael O'Sullivan)

"No the internet is not bad for music because you don't have to pay twenty Euro for your music and sometimes you might even get lucky and you could get free music"
(Bill Foley)

"I think the internet is great for music because if people only want one song from an album they can get it without spending all their money on songs they don't want"
(David Eustace)

"The internet rocks for music because you can buy music off your computer instead of going down to a shop to get a cd"
(Dan Sweeney)

"I think the internet is great for music. I think it should be a bit cheaper because its really dear and its not like the artist isn't making enough money anyway!"
(David)

"I think there should be no free downloadable music as recording songs costs a lot of money."
(Gary Moloney)

"Music on the internet is a bad idea because it is ripping off good artists."
(Thomas Philpott)

"No, we need music and this is the next level."
(Eoghan McConvile)

"I think it is a fabulous idea! It is a breakthrough for the music industry!"
(Sarah)

"I think the Internet is ultimately great for music as it can share peoples' thoughts and feelings and can help people to cope with tragedies. It brings happiness and energy to people and overall helps the human society. "
(Raquel)

“Lots of people are saying that music on the internet is very good, but it is actually very bad - all they are thinking of is the money price of the cd they are looking for.”
(Ciara O’Shea)

"It is good for music because of faster access to good music and to downloadable. It is also bad if they don't give you what you want and if you can't do anything about it "
(James Porter)

"I think file sharing is great. Music should be free and besides bands make loads of money. Are you going to have free music on Scoilnet?"
(Mondo McGrath)

I think that music on the internet is very bad because the artists that sing the songs won't get any money and it's just ripping them off."
(Maria Ryan)

"No its great. There are some websites that play music for free!!"
(Rachel)

"I think if a musician is starting out the Internet can be a great way of promoting his/her music. Sure beats handing out flyers!"
(John in Cobh)

"The internet is cool but you should be aware of the dangers. If you are going to download make sure you know what sites to go to. I love music but I wouldn't steal a cd. So don't steal music off the internet. Bye Bye."
(Supergirl)

“Parents should not allow children under 10 on the net on there own because they wouldn't know what to do and kids between 10 and 16 should be watched because they could be downloading music illeagally.”
(Ciara O’Shea)

“I think parents should not allow there children on the net without having Parental supervision. So that parents know what there children are up to while using the net. Children who are 11 and 12 should be more mature not to steal.”
(Orlaith O'Connor)

"Hello Everyone! There are two sides to selling music on the net. If you burn cds and keep on giving your files away that's the bad thing about having music on the net. If you buy the cds on the web that's good because you are not stealling."
(Orlaith O'Connor)

Posted by National Centre for Technology in Education at 02:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Samfélag, fjölskylda og tækni, SAFT, er samevrópskt vakningarátak um örugga og jákvæða netnotkun barna og unglinga. Heimili og skóli annast útfærslu og framkvæmd verkefnisins fyrir hönd Menntamálaráðuneytisins, og hefur staðið fyrir ýmsum atburðum til að stuðla að betri netnotkun ungmenna. Í dag er alþjóðlegi netöryggisdagurinn og heldur SAFT af því tilefni ráðstefnu um siðferði á netinu. Eitt af meginmarkmiðum ráðstefnunnar er að vekja umræðu og umhugsun um netið sem opinberan vettvang og gagnvirkan fjölmiðil. Við ræðum um nauðsyn þess að almennt siðferði og umgengnisreglur færist yfir á þennan miðil, og þá að skólakerfið bregðist við gjörbreyttum aðstæðum í upplýsingasamfélaginu og að foreldrar séu miðvitaðir um þessa þróun, en oft reynast foreldrar eftirbátar barna sinna hvað varðar þekk- ingu á þessari tækni. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir menntamálaráðherra setur ráðstefnuna og opnar um leið sérstaka bloggsíðu um siðferði á netinu, og setur einnig svokallað bloggaþon: Með bloggaþoninu setjum við af stað vettvang þar sem fara mun fram opin umræða um siðferði á netinu. Þar verður skipulögð dagskrá til 14. febrúar og fjöldi þjóðþekktra einstaklinga munu taka þátt í bloggaþoninu. Ekki síður er lögð rík áhersla á að nemendur, kennarar og foreldrar taki þátt. Eftir setningu ráðstefnunnar fjallar Isabella Santa frá ENISA, Evrópustofnun um net- og upplýsingaöryggi, um vitundarvakningu í þessum málaflokki. Næst fjallar Ketill Magnússon siðfræðingur um siðferðisvanda tengdum ófyrirséðum afleiðingum nýrrar tækni og almenn siðfræðileg viðmið. Þá flytur Þuríður Jóhannsdóttir, sérfræðingur hjá Rannsóknarstofnun KHÍ erindið “Hvaða veislu er unga fólkið með í farangrinum”, um hvernig ungt fólk notar og nýtir sér nýja tækni, og hlutverk skólanna í því samhengi. Lára Stefánsdóttir ráðgjafi um upplýsingatækni og menntun fjallar um hvernig eigi að mennta börn fyrir nútímann og loks flytur Stefán Hrafn Hagalín markaðsstjóri Skýrr erindi þar sem hann reynir að draga útlínur framtíðarlands- lags stafræna Íslands. Fundarstjóri er Þorbjörn Broddason og mun hann stýra pallborðsumræðum að erindum loknum, þar sem taka mun þáttfulltrúar Heimilis og skóla, fjölmiðla, póst- og fjarskiptastofnunar og netþjónustuaðila. Ráðstefnan er haldin í sal Íslenskrar Erfða- greiningar, að Sturlugötu 8 og hefst kl. 13. Aðgangur er ókeypis en ágætt ef gestir skrá þátttöku sína á heimasíðunni www.saft.is. Þar má einnig nálgast beina útsendingu af ráðstefnunni.

Posted by Heimili og skoli at 02:15 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Ráðstefna um siðferði á Netinu verður haldin á vegum SAFT þann 7. febrúar nk. á Alþjóðlega netöryggisdaginn (Safer Internet Day), kl. 13:00 – 16:15. Staðsetning: Íslensk erfðagreining, Sturlugötu 8, Reykjavík.

Siðferði og Netið eru æ oftar nefnd í sömu andrá enda Netið síbreytilegur vettvangur sem við erum stöðugt að venjast og læra á eftir því sem möguleikum þess og tengingum við aðra miðla fjölgar. Mikið hefur verið rætt um að svo virðist sem þeir umgengnishættir sem við höfum komið okkur saman um í hinu áþreifanlega umhverfi hafi ekki færst yfir á vettvang Netsins. Einnig er rætt um að netnotkun einstaklinga í skóla eða vinnu sé önnur en sú sem fer fram heima og mikið vanti á að við séum meðvituð um eðli Netsins og neikvæða og jákvæða eiginleika þess. Þessi atriði verða meðal annars til umræðu á ráðstefnunni sem ætluð er öllum sem áhuga hafa á þessum málum. Sérstaklega höfðar hún til skólastjórnenda, kennara og kennaranema, foreldra, fjölmiðlafólks, netþjónustuaðila og fulltrúa stjórnvalda og starfsfólks þeirra stofnana sem hafa með reglur um notkun upplýsingatækninnar að gera

Meðal markmiða ráðstefnunnar er að vekja umræður og umhugsun um Netið sem opinberan vettvang og gagnvirkan fjölmiðil, nauðsyn þess að almennt siðferði og umgengnisreglur færist yfir á þennan miðil og að skólakerfið bregðist við gjörbreyttum aðstæðum í upplýsingasamfélaginu.

Við þetta tækifæri verður opnaður bloggvefur á vefsíðu SAFT (www.saft.is) þar sem fram mun fara opin umræða um siðferði á Netinu. Við hvetjum alla til að leggja orð í belg.

Hægt er að skrá sig á saft@saft.is og hjá Heimili og skóla í síma 5627475
Ókeypis aðgangur og allir velkomnir

ATH - Einnig verður hægt að fylgjast með ráðstefnunni í beinni útsendingu á vefsíðu SAFT. Nemendur á fjölmiðlabraut í Flensborg sjá um upptöku og útsendingu.

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Svenska/Swedish
Sverige: Elever i klass 1:6A och klass 1:6B i Vårbyskolan
Vi har pratat om våra erfarenheter och diskuterat om användande av Internet.

Chatt

Fördelar med chatt
Man behöver inte ringa eller gå till den personen man chattar med. En bra sak är inte behöva betala för telefonsamtal. Du kan chatta med folk över hela JORDEN! Du kan träffa nytt folk som du kan tycka är trevliga.
Webbkamera, så att man ser den man pratar med.
Mikrofon så att man hör varandra
Det är roligt att kunna skicka bilder och filer till varandra via chatten. Smileys för att kunna visa känslor och att ha lite skoj. Nya internetkompisar och ha möjlighet att göra en profil, att berätta om sig själv.

Nackdelar med chatt
Det kan finnas pedofiler och andra otrevliga personer!
Någon kan låtsas vara någon annan och att de är äldre eller yngre än i verkligheten. En person kan planera att bli vän med dig men kan vara en hemsk person som vill dig illa. En kille kan vara en tjej och en tjej kan vara en kille.
En bild på en person kan vara falsk. Genom filöverföring kan du få virus. I en chatt kan det finnas porr.
Det är möjligt att bli lurade av folk som man inte känner.
Du kan bli hotad genom en chatt. Andra kan sprida dina kontaktuppgifter, trots att du inte vill det. Någon kan spåra upp dig om du lämnat ut din bostadsadress.
Du kan bli beroende av att chatta och använda för mycket av din tid framför datorn. Dina föräldrar vill kanske inte att du chattar, det kan kännas obehagligt för dem att inte ha mer kontroll vad som görs via datorn. Du kan bli övervakad av dina föräldrar.

Hur kan vi öka säkerheten i en chatt?
Titta på den man chattar med via webbkamera, så att det är den person som man tror. Det kan vara säkrare att endast chatta med kompisar. Skapa ett nytt chattkonto och avluta det man hade tidigare om det blir problem. De nya kontaktuppgifterna lämnar man bara ut till de man känner.
Att blockera de du inte vill ha kontakt med på din kontaktlista. Lämna inte ut din adress, ditt telefonnummer eller lösenord. Om någon har ditt lösenord kan de få kontakt med dina kompisar och låtsas vara du.
Att vara försiktig med vad man gör, att tänka efter före.
Träffa inte okända personer i verkliga livet om det kan finnas risk att något otäckt kan hända, till exempel våld, våldtäkt, mord, kidnappning eller hot. Du vet inte om den du tänkt träffa kommer ensam eller med ett helt gäng.
Att inte lämna ut en bild på sig själv utan vidare, du vet inte hur den bilden kommer att användas i framtiden.

In English
Good and bad things about chatting and blogging
The nice things about chat is that you can easily speak and keep contact with your friends and with people all over the world. You can use the webcam and microphone to be able to watch and listen to the person you chat with. It is fun to send pictures and files to each other through the chat. The smileys help you to show your feelings in a funny way. The bad things with chat, communities and blogs are that you can meet pedofiles and other unpleasant persons. It is easy to pretend to be someone else! You can pretend to be younger or older than you really are and a picture of a person can appear to be false. Another horrible thing is that you can find pornography in the chat or you can get virus on your computer. It has also happened that people have got threatened through chat and email. And it is very easy to spend too much time in front of the computer, more than your parents want you to do.

På svenska / In Swedish
Hemsidor

Fördelar med hemsidor
Spela på olika hemsidor eller bara surfa och kolla in andra sidor. Lyssna på musik och läsa nyheter, göra läxor och använda lexikon och lära sig en massa. Det finns möjlighet att gå in på hemsidor från många länder. Man kan forska, läsa och söka efter information och lära sig mycket man aldrig hört eller läst om förut. Se på roliga bilder och på film. Man kan till exempel publicera olika dikter. Det går att köpa saker på hemsidor, till exempel bio– och flygbiljetter och se vilka tider filmen visas eller flygets tidtabell.

Nackdelar med hemsidor
Om man går in på fel sida kan det finnas virus, porr och information om knark. Farlig information kan spridas via hemsidor, till exempel om att göra bomber. När informationen är lätt att komma åt kan den användas av många. Det finns risk att förlora pengar, till exempel genom att spela poker.
Falska meddelanden på klickbara bilder, till exempel att du har vunnit pengar eller reklam som är för bra för att vara sann.

Hur kan vi öka säkerheten på hemsidor?
Man ska helst ha något antivirusprogram som tar bort virus och blockar vissa hemsidor med porr i eller något annat som kan vara brottsligt och dåligt. Att vara försiktig när det gäller EXE filer, de kan innehålla virus. Förbjud sidor som innehåller olagligheter. Att inte tro på det som verkar vara för bra, vem vill egentligen ge bort pengar till någon okänd person?

e-post

Fördelar med e-post
Det går att skicka till en person som inte sitter vid sin dator, de kan läsa e-posten vid ett annat tillfälle än när du skriver. Det är lätt att spara eller radera e-post.
Om du är kär i någon kan du förklara dina känslor via e-post för den personen. Vem vet, den personen tycker kanske lika mycket om dig.

Nackdelar med e-post
Du kan få e-post från falska avsändare. Du kan få virus och massor av reklam.

Hur kan vi öka säkerheten med e-post?
Att inte lämna ut din e-postadress till någon du inte känner. Att komma ihåg att använda antivirus- och antispamprogram. Att vara försiktig och inte öppna EXE-filer om man inte vet vad det är, det kan vara ett virus.

Du avgör
Skriv inte otrevliga saker när du är på Internet, det är inte bara otrevligt, du kan dessutom bli avstängd på platser som Lunarstorm och Playahead. Du och andra avgör vad som sker på Internet! Och du, det är inte bra att tro på allt som finns på Internet, du ska inte tro på det som verkar för bra. Det finns bra och dåligt på Internet.

Hälsningar från oss i klass 1:6A och klass 1:6B på Vårbyskolan
Angelina, Aleksandra, Ajmal, Amani, Arhimat, Aslihan, Baris, Bauer, Brian, Daniel, Dian, Eleftheria, Hevin, Ipek, Kristoffer, Madeleine, Meron, Mwer, Nathalie, Noman, Niklas, Riim, Rohey, Ronja,Yasemin, Zaid, William, Youness, Özen

Om du vill veta mer om hur vi arbetar med Bloggmarathon kan du besöka:
http://webnews.textalk.com/se/articles.php?newspaper=1762&group=67254

Ett urval av texten på engelska / In english:

Safety tips from Young Swedish Bloggers

Keep chatting only with the persons you know and rely on. If you use the webcam you can ensure that the person is who he pretends to be. If somebody has hurt you through the chat, change your chat account and do only leave information about the new account to your friends. You can block the persons you don’t wish to have on your contact list. DON’T leave your address and telephone number to unknown people. And don’t arrange meetings with strangers from the chat, it is impossible to know in forehand if it is a good person or if it is a violent person. (If you really want to meet a person, bring an adult or some friends.)
Keep your password secret so that nobody can steel and misuse it pretending to be you.

If you want to know more about us:
http://webnews.textalk.com/se/articles.php?newspaper=1762&group=58804

Posted by Swedish Ministry of Education, Research and Cultur at 02:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is an international organization (specialized agency) within the United Nations System where governments and the private sector coordinate global telecommunication networks and services. Through its standards, development and policy research activities, ITU has a long-standing track record in security for information and communication systems.

For example, the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference(the top policy-making body of the ITU) adopted Resolution 130 highlighting the need to strengthen the role of the ITU in information and communication network security, to intensify work within existing ITU study groups and inviting ITU Member States and Sector Members to: participate actively in the ongoing work of the relevant ITU study groups; to take appropriate action to publicize the need to defend information and communication networks against the threat of cyberattacks; and to cooperate with other entities in these efforts.

Other related ITU Resolutions (2004) shaping the ITU work programmes include: Resolution 50 on "Cybersecurity"; Resolution 51 on "Combating spam"; and Resolution 52 on "Countering spam by technical means". There are currently more than seventy published ITU standards focusing on security.

Each year on 17 May, ITU celebrates World Telecommunication Day (WTD 2006) to commemorate its founding in 1865. This year, the theme of Promoting Global Cybersecurity was selected by ITU Council to highlight the serious challenges we face in ensuring the safety and security of today’s networked information and communication systems.

Besides the birth date of ITU, the 17th of May could take on additional significance. In the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society, adopted at the second phase of World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in November 2005, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) was requested to designate 17 May as World Information Society Day. The UNGA has previously adopted two resolutions on this year’s theme of cybersecurity, 58/199 (2004) and 57/239 (2002), on the Creation of a global culture of cybersecurity and the protection of critical information infrastructures.

These resolutions and the choice of this year’s theme for WTD 2006 reflect recognition that our increased reliance on electronic networks has exposed us to a growing number and wider variety of threats and vulnerabilities. These range from simple failures or accidents to deliberate attacks on critical information infrastructures, which are systems and assets whose incapacity or destruction would have debilitating effects on the economic and social well-being of states. In addition, in most economies, a number of critical public services are now also reliant on stable and secure electronic networks.

In today’s interconnected world of networks, threats can now originate anywhere—meaning that our collective cybersecurity depends on the security practices of every connected country, business, and citizen. In this regard, we need national and international cooperation among those who seek to promote, develop and implement a global culture of cybersecurity. In accordance with the theme of WTD 2006, ongoing ITU work programmes, and results of phase two of WSIS, a number of cybersecurity initiatives are under development by ITU. Further details of these initiatives are available from the ITU web site.

The ITU aims to continue to contribute to increasing confidence and security in the use of ICTs and promoting a global culture of cybersecurity. In that regard, we wish you a very successful Safer Internet Day 2006!

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