An important message from the Department of Internal Affairs

Phase 1 – Keeping it Real Online

Keep it Real Online is the first phase of the campaign. It gives parents and caregivers tips on how to create a safe online environment for kids and young people. It highlights online harms to children and young people (bullying, inappropriate content, pornography and grooming) which can lead to feelings of vulnerability, isolation, depression and anxiety. In some cases, it can also lead to physical harm offline. Keep it Real Online stresses that right and wrong are the same online as they are offline.

The key messages to parents and caregivers are:

· You’ve got this.

· Keep it real online. Get help and advice at www.keepitrealonline.govt.nz

· Every year, one in five young Kiwis are bullied online.

· Many young Kiwis are using porn to learn about sex.

· 40% of young Kiwis have online interactions with people they’ve never met in real life.

· Kids can go from safe places to scary ones in just a few clicks.

Phase 2 – Messages for kids and young people

We are also developing a second part to the campaign (or Phase Two) which will include messages targeted at children and young people. Like Phase One, Phase Two will also be a cross-agency effort with input from agencies. This will be in addition to our partners in the online harm prevention group like the Office of Film and Literature Classification and Netsafe.