The Internet is a scary place. Once upon a time, it was scary purely because of the amount of content on the wide, wild, web that ranges from a healthy amount of fun facts and information, to the darkest corners inhabited by illegal content. These days, an added layer of danger has taken shape because of the people who use it, themselves.

For many young people, the Internet has been the source of stress, insecurity, and hardcore cyberbullying from irresponsible users who abuse the anonymity and freedom of social media. The so-called “cancel culture” has been a distinct by-product of netizens’ bravery in both sharing their opinions (no matter how inappropriate or dangerous), and calling out or cancelling those who they believe to be in the wrong. Many Internet trolls have fully taken advantage of having social media accounts unconnected to their true identities, in order to spread misinformation and hate towards unsuspecting victims.

The amount of likes, views, and subscribers one gets have also had a huge influence on the youth’s depiction of self-worth and social acceptance, no matter if they’re a professional internet personality or just a silent user of the platform. Moreover, seeing the curated feeds of other people can also add to someone’s insecurity, with picture-perfect lifestyles promulgating search bars and social media dashboards. Most of which are highly-edited and untrue to project images of extravagance, exceptional beauty, and enviable ways of living.

Recognizing the growing issue concerning digital responsibility in the country, Google Philippines has released a collection of videos that aim to teach Filipinos how to traverse the virtual space in a safer and friendlier way. The series of videos were launched on its local YouTube channel, developed by youth volunteers from Teach Peace Build Peace Movement (TPBPM) and youth group Titik Poetry.

Ten videos have been released so far to shed some light on online kindness, digital privacy and security, fake news, courage in the virtual world, and more, making use of spoken word poetry and animation to better grasp the attention of young audiences.

“Poetry is powerful and we can use it as a tool to make the internet a safer place. Each of us has a unique talent or skill and if we use it for an important cause like digital responsibility, we can make a positive impact in the community,” said Verlin Santos, Founder of Titik Poetry in a press statement.

Google Philippines also collaborated with local content creators and popular local personalities to spread this message of cyber safety. YouTuber Janina Vela, and actor and businessman Dingdong Dantes, are just some of the big names featured in the project under the platform’s campaign to promote #SaferInternet4Filipinos.

“At Google, we believe in enabling partners, communities and volunteers so we can all build a safer internet. The campaign is a shared effort of individuals from different walks of life to demonstrate that everyone can make a valuable contribution and be a better netizen. Everyone can use their passion, talents, or skills to promote digital responsibility in their own way,” added Country Director of Google Philippines, Bernadette Nacario.

As the campaign intends, hopefully the Internet would be a safer space for all as Filipinos, young and old, learn more about their responsibility to each other on the digital world through more content like this.

Check out more videos and the full Safer Internet Day 2021 playlist on the Google Philippines YouTube channel: