A new website to promote safe online activity for children has been unveiled today.
Developed by the National Centre for Technology in Education, Webwise provides information and resources for teachers, parents and students on surfing, chatting, sharing, and gaming online.
Minister for Education Mary Hanafin said it was no longer enough to simply supervise children using the Internet at home on a family computer, as a growing number of people are going online through mobile phones and games consoles.
"We must maintain a three-pronged approach to Internet safety based on having information on the latest technologies, educating our teachers and parents, and using technologies such as content filtering," she said.
With this in mind, Ms Hanafin said the Department of Education is working on installing a system to filter content for schools as part of the national broadband network that is being rolled out.
"Schools have also been asked to confirm they have acceptable use policies in place," she added.
The announcement of the website comes on Safer Internet Day, which aims to promote safer online activity. The initiative is a global one driven by the European Union, and includes a worldwide blogging session that will highlight legal, ethical and safety issues online.