It is called Cyberkid and it aims to act as a “shield of protection” from the mischief on the Internet, for children who surf the Internet from smartphones. The reason is the application developed by the Directorate for the Prosecution of Electronic Crime, at the initiative of the Ministry of Citizen Protection and sponsored by the company Wind, and which is already available for iPhone and “smart” phones with Android operating system.
The presentation of the application was made yesterday by the Minister of Public Order and Citizen Protection, Vasilis Kikilias, and the head of the Directorate for the Prosecution of Electronic Crime, Manolis Sfakianakis. Also present were the Minister of Education Andreas Loverdos and the Deputy Minister Alexandros Dermentzopoulos, who stated that they “embrace” every initiative of the Greek Police for a safer Internet for minors.
According to Mr. Sfakianakis, Cyberkid's goal is to raise awareness among children about threats on the Internet, while it also includes several electronic games, which they will be able to play within the completely safe "digital" environment of the application. "At the same time, thanks to Cyberkid, a child will be able to contact the SOS "Cyber Alert" line, any time they encounter something online that seems suspicious or disturbing to them. All they will need to do is press the special button on the application, to immediately communicate with the line's experts, who are ready to provide advice and instructions 24 hours a day," he noted.
Parents will be able to do the same, he added, who through Cyberkid will also be able to be informed about Internet safety issues. In fact, he estimated that within the next three months the application will have been installed on 500,000 mobile phones, which will reach 3.5 million in the first year. "At 98%, the Internet is a window to knowledge and entertainment. However, there is also a dangerous part that, although it amounts to 2%, our experience has shown that it can even endanger human lives", he emphasized.
For his part, Mr. Kikilias said that the actions of the Greek Police to protect children on the Internet do not stop here. "We say "yes" to the Internet, but undertake a series of initiatives specifically for underage users, who are the least suspicious of risks such as cyberbullying", he said. Mr. Dermentzopoulos also spoke about risks that, if not addressed, can turn any computer into a potential threat to children.
According to Mr. Loverdos, familiarizing students with the proper use of the Internet is one of the main priorities of the social mission of the educational system. Thus, together with the leadership of the Ministry of Public Order, the Ministry of Education announced that from September all school units will be included in the online safe navigation course program, which had been piloted by the Cybercrime Prosecution in 450 schools since last year.
Source: kathimerini.gr
