Surf the Web Safely brings internet safety resources in English and activities with nonprofits in the USVI.
St. Thomas, USVI, February 6, 2023 – Libe/rty VI, along with parent company, Liberty Latin America (LLA), is celebrating Safer Internet Day to highlight the importance of using the internet responsibly and safely. The event, which marks its 20 th edition this year, will be observed worldwide on Tuesday, February 7, 2023, and will feature the slogan “Together for a better internet.”
Liberty VI will celebrate Safer Internet Day on the territory for the first time and will continue its internet safety awareness efforts throughout the year with its new corporate social responsibility campaign Surf the Web Safely. Its main purpose is to educate the public on how to use the internet responsibly and safely. The campaign’s microsite www.libertyvi.com/surf-web-safely offers downloadable resources, videos, tip sheets and educational materials in English.
“We are excited to bring the worldwide Safer Internet Day celebration to the Virgin Islands. This is the perfect occasion to introduce Surf the Web Safely as a tool that will help everyone in the VI enjoy the internet safely and responsibly,” said Bala Balakrishnan, general manager of Liberty VI. “This is part of our commitment to the VI to provide educational resources that will help all consumers use our internet products with peace of mind and feel empowered to protect themselves online.”
As part of the Safe the Web Safely campaign, Liberty Foundation will present a conference on cyberbullying prevention for children and teens ages 11 to 18 at Y Teens, VI in St. Thomas. This nonprofit organization offers programs and services that helps girls and young women cultivate life skills and build their self-confidence in the process.
To observe Safer Internet Day 2023, Liberty VI offers some useful tips for consumers from the Surf the Web Safely webpage on how to best use the internet safely and responsibly:
Protect your computer with a firewall and a good antivirus program and make sure it is up to date.
Create strong passwords using a combination of letters, numbers and symbols that only you can understand. Do not use names or birthdays. Change passwords frequently and do not share them with anyone.
Never open emails from contacts that you do not know or places you do not do business with. These could trick you intro providing your personal information or infect your computer.
Do not make online purchases from businesses you do not know and are unable to guarantee your safety online.
Use credit cards to make online purchases. These offer better identity theft protection than debit cards.
Be careful with the people you meet online. Do not give your full name initially. Use an alias instead. Choose a public place for your first in-person meeting and tell a trusted friend about it.
Protect you online reputation. Do not upload any content that you do not want others to see because it can ruin your reputation and even make you lose your job.
Protect your identity online. Make sure you have protection filters and controls in your computer.
If you are a cyberbullying victim do not answer back with anger. It is better to ignore it or change your email address to all communication with the aggressor. If you feel threatened, report the situation to the authorities.
Be careful with internet addiction. Try to make a balance between your internet use and other activities in your life. If it becomes a problem, you need to seek help.
Safer Internet Day is a global activity that raises awareness among children, young people, parents, teachers, seniors and the public on the importance of internet safety. Safer Internet Day is held annually on Tuesday of the second week of February. Over 100 countries worldwide participate in Safer Internet Day by organizing activities such as school events, contests, and educational resource
presentations on the subject.
For more information on Surf the Web Safely and Safer Internet Day 2023, visit the Surf the Web Safely webpage at www.libertyvi.com/surf-web-safely. There is more information on Safer Internet Day available at its webpage www.saferinternetday.org.