The Krimpenerwaard municipality engages children between the ages of 8 and 12 in the fight against cybercrime. They learn about the dangers of the internet with the help of a computer game. The idea is that the children then pass on that knowledge to their parents and grandparents.
“My father already knows everything, but my mother can still teach me something”, 11-year-old Keano told Omroep West. “For example not to click on strange links.” He is currently the best player in the municipality. “Maybe because I want to become an ICT specialist and I did my presentation on hacking once.”
The initiative emerged from a survey among the residents of Krimpenerwaard. It showed that people are afraid of scams via the internet and they want to receive more information. The municipality then took action.
At the beginning of January, all students from grade 5 to grade 8 received a letter from the mayor and the police inviting them to play the game. The children are cyber agents in the game and have to answer questions about online crime and complete assignments.
Children learn faster
According to mayor Roel Cazemier, there is great interest. “Children learn faster and are more focused on using the Internet, so we hope they will be their parents or grandparents streetwise can make.”
The 8-year-old Lieve is also playing. “You can really learn something from it, for example what hackers do and how you can stop them.” According to her mother, Lieve regularly points out suspicious things to her parents. “When I open a link on my phone, she says: that is not allowed, that can be dangerous.”
In fact, the 8-year-old loves the game so much that she has changed her plans for the future. “I wanted to be a detective, but now I want to become something else: online cop, through this game.”