Nordic Collaboration for a Safer Internet in Copenhagen

The meeting brought together experts from Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland.

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Nordic safer internet network operators gathered in Copenhagen in early April. This was the second meeting of its kind, hosted this time by the Danish Safer Internet Centre (SIC DK). The first meeting was organized by Sweden (SIC SE) in 2024.

Safer Internet Centres in different countries promote the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) strategy nationally and internationally, aiming to make the internet and other digital environments safer, especially for children and young people. The goal of this meeting was to share current trends and exchange ideas related to safer internet themes.

Countries are dealing with very similar issues, and a common theme at the moment is informing about the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) and promoting its implementation. For example, in Denmark, a survey on young people’s use of digital services was conducted at the turn of 2024-2025, aiming to gather information on DSA-related themes. Additionally, Denmark is preparing a short video in collaboration with various government agencies and a youth panel to explain what the DSA is.

In Finland, a pilot survey on media usage among children and young people is currently underway, which is very much in line with the survey conducted in Denmark. Alongside the survey, efforts are being made to raise awareness about the regulation and the opportunities it provides for app users. In Sweden, the Digital trygghet website has been published, which briefly explains the DSA and provides guidance on what to report and how to do it.

The meeting also shared good practices from the past project period and presented websites maintained by different countries. Denmark showcased the ON.dk website, which contains materials for teaching children and young people of different ages, families, and leisure activities. Additionally, the material is used in schools as a peer program where older students support younger students in becoming more aware and responsible media users.

In Norway, the ung.no website has become very popular, functioning as a question-and-answer forum for young people. The site contains ready-made answers related to various themes, and new questions can also be asked. The platform has enabled young people to easily find reliable information on even awkward topics, and all of this can be done anonymously.

One common theme was also promoting youth participation. Although various youth panels have been implemented in the countries, they have not yet been great successes. A particular challenge has been obtaining a comprehensive number of respondents and respondents from different backgrounds. Since we strive for voluntary participation, gathering participants has been difficult. However, the meeting provided good ideas for developing the topic, and hopefully, we will better capture young people’s opinions in the future.

The goal for the future is to increase collaboration between the Nordic countries and perhaps even implement a joint campaign. The aim is to organize another Nordic meeting next year, but it is still undecided who will be the next host country. We look forward to seeing how the collaboration progresses!

Text: Sasu Leinonen, Project Manager