While many social commentators look for opportunities to belt the Federal Government for the things they do wrong, they are less quick to laud them for doing something right.
A csae in point is some sterling work done by the good folk in the Department of Broadband and the Digital Economy, who have created a Cybersafety Help Button designed to keep young people safe online. The Button is an online resource hub that gives children and teenagers instant access to help and information on cybersafety issues 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Best of all, it is a free application which anyone can download from the website of the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy. Once downloaded, it sits on the computer desktop or within the taskbar. When the button is clicked, users are taken directly to a web page where they can talk, report or learn about cybersafety issues.
The talk function gives a link to Kids Helpline. Users who are worried by cyberbullying or offensive online behaviour or content can phone or chat online to a professional counsellor.
The report function offers direct links to pages on social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter that have site-specific cybersafety information. There are also links for reporting scams, fraud, inappropriate websites and improper behaviour and for contacting the Australian Federal Police.
The learn function provides a range of cybersafety educational resources through the ACMA’s Cybersmart website and the Department’s Stay Smart Online website. Visitors to these sites can learn about cyberbullying, social networking sites, scams and frauds, password protection, viruses and malware, unwanted contact and inappropriate behaviour.
Best of all this initiative came out of a consultation with the Government’s Youth Advisory Group and the Consultative Working Group on Cybersafety, made up of members aged eight to 17 years. They expressed the need for a ‘one-stop shop’ for cybersafety help and information and the Department obliged. Too often we see adults developing materials ythat they think would be good for young people, so it is great to see this latest development. Congratulations to Senator Conroy and the team at DBCDE....
The Cybersafety Help Button is available free of charge at www.dbcde.gov.au/helpbutton. It is compatible with all major PC and Mac operating systems and is easily installed onto home, school and library computers
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