In today’s digital world, promoting a culture for the safer use of the Internet and the use of all new digital technologies in a secure and responsible way is of vital importance. The Open University of Cyprus (OUC), the country’s university dedicated to open and distance education, participates in the implementation of the European project “CYberSafety III”, which is funded by the Connective Europe Facility (CEF) Programme, and focuses on strengthening the culture for safer use of the Internet in Cyprus from an early age. The project is coordinated by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth and aspires to continue the operation of the existing Safer Internet Center in Cyprus. Professor Thanasis Hadzilacos, director of the Educational Technology Laboratory leads the OUC research team.
The main goal of the “CyberSafety III” is to add new services to the existing Portal for “Safer Internet”, such as: a) an awareness raising centre and digital repositories for parents, teachers, and other professionals, working with children, about better and safer use of the Internet, b) a helpline service to provide support to students, young people, and their parents regarding harmful content and contact on the Internet (e.g. Cyber bullying, hate speech, sexting) and, c) a hotline service for receiving and managing reports from the public, related to illegal online child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
The CYberSafety III project builds on the successful operation of the Cyprus Center for Safer Internet and has a two year-long duration (01/2021-03/2022). In the consortium implementing the project, apart from the OUC, participate the Digital Security Authority, the Pancyprian School of Parents, the University of Cyprus, the Cyprus University of Technology, and the Cyprus Telecommunications Authority (CYTA).