NZ software to help keep British kids safe

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SAFETY DOLPHIN: Kiwi-designed cyberspace safety software Hector's World is to be used in British schools.

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Kiwi-designed software that uses animated characters to help keep children safe in cyberspace is spreading internationally, with British authorities poised to introduce it in schools.

Animated episodes of Hector's World will be shown to children aged five to seven throughout British schools by the law enforcement agency Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre.

The scheme was launched at a central London primary school yesterday.

There are five episodes of Hector's World which features Hector the dolphin and his underwater friends who help youngsters understand why they need to be careful online.

Liz Butterfield, managing director of Hector's World Ltd - a charitable subsidiary of the New Zealand Internet safety group Netsafe - said she was thrilled the resource was being picked up internationally. It had been used in New Zealand for two-year-olds to 10-year-olds since 2005.

The software was crucial to keeping children safe from online risks such as cyber-stalking, identity theft, cyber-bullying, scams and grooming for sexual abuse, she said. Children as young as three could use a mouse and keyboard and six-year-olds to eight-year-olds were using social networking sites, sending e-mails and surfing the Internet. "It's all about who to give their personal information out to and when they should not ... to help them understand that risk."

Agency chief executive Jim Gamble said teachers had asked for the material because it was never too early to start giving children "safety first" messages. "In the same way that we teach small children to cross the road safely, there is a need to ensure that young children learn good habits for future life online. If we give them early lessons in a way that is engaging, relevant and fun, we can help to safeguard young children not only now but well into the future."

The agency works with professionals from the wider child protection community and industry to track criminals and hold them accountable for their crimes.

In the past year it had removed 131 children from sexual abuse, arrested nearly 300 suspected child-sex offenders and dealt with about a million images of child sex-abuse.

Mr Gamble said the agency planned to integrate Hector's World into its ThinkUKnow education programme, which provided online safety education for eight-year-olds to 16-year-olds and had reached 1.7 million children since its introduction in 2006.

* Hector's World is an animated programme that aims to teach children about safety online.

* There are five episodes starring Hector the dolphin and his friends, including Kui the wise whale and Ranjeet the crab.

Other features:

* Safety button: Children can click this if something they see worries them. The screen is instantly covered with an underwater scene and they are advised to get adult help.

* Downloadable colouring-in books.

* Online jigsaw puzzles.

- © Fairfax NZ News