Three out of four young people say the school does not teach them online safety

Norwegian youth do not trust the school if they experience something uncomfortable on the internet and say that online training is not good enough.

Norwegian youth between the ages of 15 and 18 have responded to a survey Buypass has conducted in connection with the event ‘Safer Internet Day,’ writes Dagsavisen. It states that it is the surveillance and image sharing they fear the most on the Internet.

As many as 33 percent of the young people in the survey state that they have already been tricked online.

Only one in four replies that they believe the school provides good enough training on how to stay safe online, and only 1 percent say they would have gone to a teacher for help if they had experienced something unpleasant.

Youth say they trust the police more or go to their parents if something happens. Communications Director Janne Syversen of Buypass says the survey shows that the school does not provide necessary or relevant training in the safe use of the Internet.

State Secretary Jan-Christian Kolstø (V) tells the newspaper that the school has a responsibility to teach the youth about online and source criticism.

– “In the new curriculum, digital skills will have a clearer place through the Knowledge Promotion 2020. This means, among other things, good digital judgment and information and data security. There will also be a stronger emphasis on critical thinking and source criticism in the subjects,” says Kolstø.

© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today