GREECE Safer Internet Centre Safer Internet Day is coordinated by the pan-European Awareness raising network, INSAFE, each year in February to promote safer and more responsible use of online technology and mobile phones. In Greece, the Awareness Centre Saferinternet.gr, as the representative of INSAFE, initiates and coordinates all activities and events on Safer Internet Day. The main aim of Saferinternet.gr is to encourage first of all as many schools, educators, and pupils as possible to participate, but also parents and parental associations, municipalities, enterprises and the industry of Internet to take action for making the Internet a better place for minors. All activities around Safer Internet Day are published on http://www.saferinternet.gr/sid. Safer Internet Day 2013 In light of the tenth edition of the Safer Internet Day, Saferinternet.gr has launched a special questionnaire addressing educators, parents and children regarding this year's SID theme "online rights and responsibilities", in order to map the areas of interest for all users including the industry. In addition, Saferinternet.gr will coordinate once more several activities around Greece through its "Ambassadors" scheme; many schools, libraries, municipalities, NGOs and enterprises have expressed their interest in acting beyond our physical presence by organizing various events, under our guidance and with our material. The participating schools this year are invited to create a thematic poster regarding the slogan "Connect with respect" while gymnaseums and lyceums will also have the chance to create our campaign's T-shirt by submitting their entries in a special Facebook Page. Furthermore, on February 5, 2013, a central event will be held at the National Hellenic Research Foundation, in Athens, organised with the support of the European Parliament Information Office in Greece and in cooperation with important stakeholders from the government and the industry. The conference aims to reflect current concerns and opportunities regarding online rights and responsibilities and to explore the shared responsibility of the users and the Industry so as to make Internet a better and safer place. Moreover, a week after Safer Internet Day, on February 12, 2013, a round-table will be organised in close collaboration with the European Parliament Information Office in Greece at its premises in Athens, addressing Greek Members of the European Parliament, teachers, parents and the wider public. Saferinternet.grThe Greek Awareness Centre Saferinternet.gr and the Internet safety campaign running in Greece since 2004, are implemented under the auspices of the European Commission, within the framework of the Safer Internet programme.
For the implementation of our goals, the Greek Awarenes Centre is implementing a variety of awareness activities such as conducting informative seminars towards the wider public, train-the-trainers workshops for educators, promotion of issues concerning internet safety to the mass media, creation of polymorphic online an print material and TV and radio campaigns. The Awareness Centre collaborates with representatives from the government, the online technologies industry as well as NGOs in Greece and abroad, which have as primary goal the provision of a safer online environment. The Greek Saferinternet Awareness Centre is the national representative for Greece of the Insafe Network of Safer Internet Awareness Centres, with 30 members across Europe and Russia. Within the Insafe network, Saferinternet.gr exchanges ideas, experiences, best practices and informative material with its fellow awareness centres. The non-profit organization Safer Internet Hellas is coordinating the Greek Awareness Centre. Besides Saferinternet.gr, the Greek Safer Internet Centre consists of two further axes: the Greek hotline Safeline and the helpline YpoSTIRIZO. What online rights and responsibilities means to us... As in every democracy, so also in the democracy of the Internet rights are always accompanied by responsibilities. For the Greek Safer Internet Centre, but also for parents, teachers, and minors, the ultimate right is to protect our privacy, and to feel safe on the Internet. On the other hand, the most important responsibility is considered the respect towards other people’s personal data, which should never be posted online, without these people’s permission. Besides the above, for the Greek SIC it is a major importance not to be bullied online, but not to bully either! To be able to easily report inappropriate material or behavior online is of high importance as well – both as right and as responsibility), and the Internet industry, should take this seriously into account. But, not only that. The critical thinking and the filtering of the information available online, as well as the access to quality content is every minor’s right. The development of critical thinking of minors is in every respect the responsibility of parents and teachers, whose life experience and maturity can guide the minors through their online paths. Last but not least, minors should understand, that, not all content online is destined for them, so age and content ratings should be respected, and not just ignored, under the aspect “ I am mature enough to deal with it!”. The content providers have as goal to protect the minors, when rating their material, so why not take their advice? All in all… “Connect with Respect!”
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Safer Internet Greece
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