A Safer Internet for Children Is More Important Than International Chicken Wing Day

Let’s be honest. This is getting out of hand. 

International Pillow Fight Day? International No Diet Day? International Chicken Wing Day?

These are actual designated days that show up on someone’s calendar (go ahead and Google them; you’ll see). I’m not clear on the protocol to get such days recognized. Does anyone manage this, or is it just a free-for-all? Probably the latter, given there is also an International Have a Bad Day Day.

Well, here is one designation I’m taking seriously: Safer Internet Day, which is today, Feb. 7. It serves as a reminder to take action to protect children from potential perils in today's digital age. Begun in 2004—and having spread now to more than 180 countries—it is a day during which child advocates and stakeholders in child protection join forces to push for increased awareness, implementation of legislation and establishment of safeguards to keep minors safe when surfing online.

Children are especially vulnerable to being groomed or influenced by adults they encounter online and are less able to understand the long-term privacy implications of consenting to their data collection.

Here is some data to make you nervous:

• Every day, an estimated 500,000 cyber-predators are active online, according to the FBI. And more than half of internet sexual exploitation victims are between the ages of 12 and 15. 
• Only two out of ten children between the ages of 8 and 11 are aware of the issue and express concern that strangers may find out information about them. While using social media, 40% of children remove privacy settings in order to attract more friends or followers.” (Child Safety Los Angeles) 
• Nearly half of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 (46%) report experiencing at least one of six cyberbullying behaviors asked about in a Pew Research Center survey conducted from April 14-May 4, 2022. (Pew Research) 

This is a complex problem, but we aren’t helpless to intervene. 

Governments are making efforts. The United Kingdom, for instance, implemented the “UK Design Code,” which provides a framework for UK regulators on how to apply data protection for children. The code limits the ability companies have to track children's locations, personalize advertisements and 'nudge' them to provide additional information about themselves.

California’s “Age Appropriate Design Code” applies to business websites children frequent and bans companies from collecting, selling or sharing precise location data for kids by default, unless needed.

UNICEF USA , concerned about the welfare of all children, has been building partnerships with regulators and the private sector to support policy innovations and better regulations at the pace needed for the digital age.

UNICEF ’s “10 Actions Manifesto” seeks to protect children online by increasing government and business awareness to safeguard children and implementing stricter laws and regulations. It includes suggested ramifications for both businesses and predators that could help better safeguard children online and raises awareness to encourage businesses to tighten their policies surrounding cyberbullying.

And we’ve teamed up with companies like the LEGO Group on collaborations like the Responsible Innovation in Technology for Children (RITEC) project. Funded by the LEGO Foundation, it aims to create practical tools for businesses and governments that will empower them to put the well-being of children at the center of digital design. (UNICEF RITEC)

These efforts to target governments, regulators and businesses are all meaningful and support a healthier online environment for kids. To further these efforts, we also need increased awareness, information and education for kids themselves.

I think about it like financial literacy, which is not often taught in school or at home, leaving young people without the tools to navigate budgets, credit, savings and debt.

Working together—parents, schools, businesses and governments—to increase online literacy is one of the most important child safeguarding activities we can take on in this digital age. And today—Safer Internet Day—is the day to ramp up those efforts. 

Let’s keep this in mind even as we turn our attention to the next arbitrary international holiday—International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day, which is Feb. 23. 

Really?