Trend micro helping children to Bcyberwise
Tuesday, 5 Mar 2019
We're proud to announce Trend Micro Incorporated, a global leader in cybersecurity solutions, as the official partner of our bCyberwise module. One of our most popular modules, bCyberwise helps students in Years 3-5 learn about cybersafety, cybersecurity and cyber ethics, and helps parents educate their children on what it means to be a good digital citizen.
Australian children are continuing to embrace technology and the Internet with research from The Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner finding that 85 per cent of Australian children see the Internet as important to their lives and spend up to 19 hours a week on digital devices outside of school. Despite this adoption many children are not aware of the dangers that exist online, including cyberbullying, fake news, unwanted contact by strangers and web threats. Recent research by Trend Micro also found that one-in-10 Australian parents admit they don’t keep track of how many devices their children are exposed to or use parental controls on smartphones and other connected devices, meaning they often struggle to manage their kids’ online security..
“Parents and schools are increasingly recognising the need for greater education around digital safety, including how to distinguish between safe and suspicious situations online. Children are spending more time on the Internet than ever before and being digital is now an integral part of their school learning, so it’s crucial they’re taught the necessary skillsets to manage safety and security online as early as possible,” said Tim Falinski, Senior Director Consumer, APAC for Trend Micro.
“As cybersecurity becomes increasingly a digital imperative with national relevance, the bCyberwise module is an important step in building digital education for young Australians. We’re very excited to partner with Life Education and extend our ongoing commitment to educate children and their families about how to enjoy their digital lives safely.”
Life Ed CEO Verity Blackman said that in an increasingly online world, the partnership would help protect children from online risks and support them to be positive digital citizens.
“These days, children face new challenges. In response to growing concerns about online safety, in 2016 we launched our dedicated cybersafety module ‘bCyberwise’, which has become Life Ed’s most sought after program, reaching around 80,000 students nationally in the past 12 months.
This partnership will enable us to further adapt and evolve our program to ensure children have the skills and knowledge they need to face the complex and changing nature of the digital environment.
This partnership will draw on Trend Micro’s knowledge and experience from its Internet Safety for Kids and Families program to help support and bolster the bCyberwise module content.
Life Ed will also support Trend Micro’s annual What’s Your Story? competition – now in its fifth year – which aims to improve Internet safety for kids by facilitating an open and positive discussion about the digital world.
