Safer Internet Day 2025

Too good to be true? Protecting yourself and others from scams

The internet has become an inevitable part of your child's life, both within their education and beyond. We use the internet for many wonderful things within the school, and we believe that it is a force for good if we remain aware of the risks which come with its use.

Scams can take many forms and target anyone, including young people. They are incredibly convincing and hard to spot, often involving fake profiles and targeting specific groups or people. You may have heard this referred to as ‘catfishing.’ If your child has been targeted by a scammer online and they have been made to do something that they didn’t want to do, it's important that they know that they are not to blame, they are not in trouble, and support is available.

Safer Internet Day 2025 falls on Tuesday 11 February 2025 and we would like to encourage you to join us in marking the day by continuing the conversation at home about spotting, responding to, and reporting online scams. Here are some helpful resources:

• You can complete the UK Safer Internet Centre’s interactive quizzes with your child about this theme.
• The UK Safer Internet Centre have created resources for use with children and young people about this year’s theme. These were designed for learning settings but can be adapted to use with your child. You can find these here. 
• Read the UK Safer Internet Centre’s tops tips for parents and carers here.
• You can share the UK Safer Internet Centre’s top tips for children and young people with your child.
• You can visit the Safeguarding Board for Northern Ireland’s Online Safety Hub website for lots of advice and support about how to keep your child safer online. It is split into two sections, one for adults and one for young people. It signposts to local support if help is needed.
• The Department of Education also continues to fund the Safer Schools NI App which is available to all school communities and families to help them manage a wide range of safeguarding issues.

We encourage you to initiate a conversation with your child. Here are a few things you can discuss together at home:

• What’s your favourite thing to do online?
• Have you ever seen a scam online? How did it make you feel?
• What signs would you look out for to spot a scam?
• What advice would you give to your friends about scams?
• Who would you talk to if you saw a scam online?
• What more can I do to help you feel safe online?