"Safer Internet Day is the annual highlight for the wide range of people and organisations who work hard to make the internet safer. Today, Safer Internet Centres, educators, parents, industry policy makers and children themselves all have the opportunity to review their achievements and identify challenges ahead" said Neelie Kroes, patron of Safer Internet Day, and European Digital Agenda Commissioner. "For children and young people especially, it is both a celebration of the wonderful opportunities the online world offers, and a reminder that they need to be responsible citizens in the digital world. I am proud to support Safer Internet Day".

Safer Internet Day 2011 celebrates the theme “digital lives” with the slogan "It’s more than a game, it’s your life", encouraging people to think about their online identity and the survival of their real self through the online experience. And because Insafe strongly believes in the power of the voice of youth and makes a point of relaying their ideas and opinions, today we have published videos made by our national Youth Panels. Take a look for yourself to see how young people really feel about these issues.

To discover all the fantastic online and offline activities organised in your country check out our Safer Internet Day fair (www.sidfair.org), a collaborative platform where more than 80 Safer Internet Day committees, international organisations and stakeholders have their profile and communicate about their actions.

Safer Internet Day 2011 will also mark the launch of a brand new publication full of fun activities for 4-8 year-olds. Entitled and developed by Insafe in collaboration with our SID gold sponsor Liberty Global Inc., this is an indispensable resource for young children as well as for their parents and teachers. As young children are now using computers and surfing on the internet at an increasingly early age, Insafe is once again leading the field by providing a resource that will raise their awareness to the opportunities and risks they may encounter online whilst honing their linguistic, cultural and social skills.

A second SID launch for the Insafe network is the Digipack 2011 which offers teachers and parents Europe-wide an exciting and eagerly-awaited range of educational resources a resource that teacher have been eagerly waiting for. From handbooks for teachers to videos for parents and children, these 30 high quality resources will be of great use to professionals in the field.

Visit our website www.saferinternet.org and that of your national awareness centre to get tips on how to protect yourself and your privacy online.

To learn more about Safer Internet Day meetings in your region or at the international level this year, stay posted at: www.saferinternetday.org and check out the SID fair www.sidfair.org.

About Insafe

Insafe is the European Safer Internet awareness-raising network co-funded by the European Commission. It comprises national contact centres across the European Union and in Iceland, Norway and Russia, with partner organisations in Argentina, Australia and the USA. Insafe aims at empowering users to benefit from the positive aspects of internet whilst avoiding the potential risks. Further information is available at www.saferinternet.org or contact .

About Safer Internet Day

Safer Internet Day is part of a global drive by awareness-raising partners to promote a safer Internet for all users, especially young people. It is organised by INSAFE in the framework of the European Commission’s Safer Internet Programme.”