Croatia

[HR] Safer Internet Day

IRIS 2018-4:1/26

Nives Zvonarić

Ministry of Culture, Zagreb, Croatia

The Croatian Regulatory Authority for Network Industries (HAKOM), in partnership with the Center for Missing and Abused Children, the Faculty of Education in Osijek, the City of Osijek and VIPnet L.t.d. and with the support of the Government’s Office for Cooperation with NGOs, organised a central national celebration of the international Safer Internet Day. On that occasion, a brochure entitled "How to Protect a Child in the World of Internet, Network Technologies and Mobile Phones" was presented to the public. The brochure offers practical and useful information on possible Internet hazards as well as on safe behaviour, privacy and personal data protection measures, and the responsible use of social networks. The brochure is adapted to the current level of network technology development and social networking trends, and includes Internet security guidelines, virtual world behaviour rules and cyberbullying prevention instructions. Furthermore, the brochure also contains useful recommendations for parents as well as the results of the first national comparative research on Child Safety on the Internet, which was conducted in September and October of last year as part of the EU Kids Online project.

The first Croatian Children's Safety Charter was signed on the same day by three Croatian telecom operators (Vipnet, Croatian Telecom, Tele2), HAKOM, the Safer Internet Center and the Center for Missing and Abused Children. The reasons for signing the Charter are: to raise public and parent awareness of this important topic; to demonstrate dedication and willingness to participate in the creation of a better and safer environment for children on the Internet; and to promote the protection of children and young people.