Film industry support for Safer Internet Day

Pro-copyright education body The Industry Trust for IP Awareness, in partnership with film education charity Into Film, has launched Staying Safe Online – Meet the Malwares, a short animation and educational resource aimed at teachers and young people, ahead of UK Safer Internet Day 2018.

The educational resource is intended for use in schools to engage with children aged 7-14 to underline how to stay safe online (when accessing film and TV content), whilst also developing their understanding of the different types of malware and their effects, including webcam hacks, the leak of personal data and online blackmail. This is supported by the Meet the Malwares animation which highlights the different types of virus that can affect a user’s computer or personal device.

Into Film’s Young Reporter Network provided the voices for the different characters in the Meet the Malwares animation, with the accompanying teaching resource including case studies detailing the all too real scenarios that young people can experience when it comes to the unwanted sharing of private images and online extortion.

The launch coincides with UK Safer Internet Day which offers the opportunity to highlight positive uses of technology and explore the role we all play in helping to create a better and safer online community. It calls upon young people, parents, carers, teachers, social workers, law enforcement, companies, policymakers, and the wider community, to join together in helping to create a better Internet.

“With many years of expertise, from designing and delivering engaging IP education programmes, we are adamant that Staying Safe Online – Meet The Malwares will be a captivating and enjoyable learning resource for both students and teachers,” asserted Liz Bales, Chief Executive of The Industry Trust for IP Awareness. “We hope that it helps to teach young people that copyright infringement can lead to some very serious consequences. With recent research showing that more and more young people are exposed to explicit content and even hacking as a result of malware, we’re excited to be launching this content in association with Into Film and UK Safer Internet Day to help further boost our message.”

“Online safety is a key issue for schools now that children are gaining access to the Internet from a young age, but it can be a tricky subject to teach,” admitted Paul Reeve, Chief Executive Officer of Into Film. “Meet the Malware tackles the issues in a way that will engage children, and will support teachers to explain the potential dangers of being online. We are really proud of this project and look forward to working more with Childnet and Safer Internet Day to raise the profile of this important topic in schools across the UK.”

“I’m delighted to see the collaboration between The Industry Trust and Into Film taking shape in the form of a brand new educational resource and accompanying animation, detailing the threat malware can cause whilst accessing pirated material online,” declared Will Gardner, CEO Childnet, Director of the UK Safer Internet Centre. “Whether you are a young person, parent, carer, school or organisation, there are steps that each person can take to make the internet a safer place. It is collaborations such as these which help to ensure Safer Internet Day has the desired positive outcome, especially as it reached 42 per cent of UK children in 2017 and is growing year on year. To have two of the UK’s leading organisations in their respected fields come together speaks volumes about the importance of the day and I look forward to seeing this resource being made available for use in classrooms across the UK.”