February to see worldwide Safer Internet Day

The European Commission has launched plans for Safer Internet Day, to take place next month.

The occasion, designed to promote awareness on the risks of the internet to users worldwide, will take place on 7 February. Vivianne Reding, commissioner for the information society and media, will act as patron of the day, which will be organised by the Insafe network, funded by the EU.

Among the events planned for the day is a 'global blogathon', where individuals and organisations will be invited to add their comments to a mass, multilingual blog.

Children, parents and teachers will all be encouraged to contribute to the blog to discuss appropriate use of new technology, both to encourage children to keep themselves safe but also to deter bloggers from breaking the law without knowing it, by reposting copyrighted work, for example.