Let’s make it better

What does a parent have to do when they cannot find any of the children in the house?

Turn off the wi-fi and they suddenly appear!

The joke is all the more funny because it is true.

Imagine having to do school projects without trusty old Google; writing essays without Wikipedia; chatting with friends without Whatsapp; whiling away time without YouTube and other apps! Sounds like a nightmare, doesn’t it? The Internet has become an essential part of our life.

While it has an ocean of benefits — from utility to recreation — the Internet also has a flip side: cyber crimes, cyberbullying, false news, addiction, and so on making it necessary for us to exercise caution while online.

This is why a day dedicated to internet safety has been gaining significance. Celebrated in February every year, the Safer Internet Day (SID) was started as an initiative of the EU SafeBorders project in 2004 and taken up by the Insafe network. From cyberbullying to social networking, the day aims to raise awareness of emerging online issues and chooses a topic reflecting current concerns. It is now celebrated in approximately 140 countries worldwide.

In 2019, SID's campaign slogan is “Together for a better internet”.

In keeping with the theme of the campaign this year, here is a video that tells you what you can do to make the Internet a safe space.