Europol welcomes pupils and students to mark Safer Internet Day
Europol, the EU’s law enforcement agency, welcomed around 150 young people to its Dutch HQ to mark international Safer Internet Day.
Working together with young people, says Europol, is one of the ‘best ways to stop them from falling victim’ to crimes like sexual extortion and coercion, cyberbullying, grooming and sexting, online fraud, counterfeit goods and identity theft. Protecting new generations in a cyber world full of threats, it adds, is a ‘top priority for law enforcement all over Europe’.
‘Together for a better internet’
The agency wanted to hear how children used the internet, so it invited school pupils and students from across the Netherlands and further afield The Hague to celebrate the third European Youth Day at Europol. The theme for this year is ‘Together for a better internet’.
Europol experts and experienced cyber professionals showed off a whole range of activities, presentations and masterclasses, while pupils also took part in workshops and hands-on interactive experiences where they could jump into a police officer’s shoes and follow clues or help two forensic cyber specialists crack a case. Pupils also experienced an ‘escape room’ where they had to find a suspect, and a crime scene investigation-type experience where the young visitors played the part of a cyber squad to help cyber forensic specialists solve an investigation.
‘Amplify the voices of children’
The event was put together with the help of Europol partners including the Dutch Safer Internet Centre, Dutch Helpline (Expertisebureau Online Kindermisbruik), Dutch High Tech Crime Unit, The Hague police, Twente University, Hack in the Class, Cybersafety4u, LFE management & events, Palo Alto Networks and KPN.
In 2018 Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) launched the European Youth Day at Europol, an innovative project to amplify the voices of children in the area of online safety. Two key dates were highlighted: the adoption of the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the European Day of the Protection of Children Against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse.
Europol’s official Twitter account, @Europol, has various videos and images of the day.
