The LEGO Group launches new tools to power-up online safety skills for all the family
Launching in line with Safer Internet Day, the newly created resources include a series of tips and advice to empower families to help children Play Smart online and a new LEGO® Smart Dash mini-skills game.
Billund, Denmark - February 7, 2023: Building on years of experience in creating safer digital spaces for children, the LEGO Group has today announced Play Smart, a fresh set of guidance for all the family to learn how they can play safely online.
Play Smart has launched in line with Safer Internet Day, and as part of the LEGO Group’s dedication to ensuring all play is safe, fun and empowering, whether online or offline. The new initiative brings families a simple 4-step guide to help them Play Smart and improve children’s online well-being. It is launching at the same time as a brand-new Smart Dash mini-skills game for kids, and a series of videos starring gaming influencer LoserFruit, offering children advice on everything from online bullying through to screen time management and online safety in the gaming world.
“The digital world can be a brilliant place to play and learn, especially for children, but many parents and caregivers struggle to talk with their children about their online life. We want to make it easier for adults to have the right conversations with their children when it comes to playing smart and staying safe online,” said Diana Ringe Krogh, Vice President, Social Responsibility & Engagement, at the LEGO Group.
“The tools we’ve launched today are all part of our mission to inspire the builders of tomorrow and help children learn skills to stay safe, healthy and happy online. Children are at the centre of everything we do, which is why we’re dedicated to delivering creative, nurturing and safe play experiences to help them reach their full potential and enhance their well-being, both online and offline.”
Play Smart
Designed to help parents and caregivers get the conversation going with their little gamers, Play Smart is a place to find advice for helping children learn good digital habits so they can enjoy smarter, safer and kinder online play. It also directs parents and caregivers to four important tips and tricks for boosting their family’s online safety knowledge. The tips cover everything from how to avoid sharing private details and being cautious about who you game with, to being kind to others and adopting better screen time management.
Smart Dash game
Smart Dash is a new game to help children level up their online safety know-how and make the internet a safer place. Found on LEGO.com, the game features a set of LEGO Minifigures racing down a track before being asked to solve challenges on safe gaming, collecting positive emojis along the way as players dash to become an online safety hero.
Each question tests knowledge on safe gaming: get the answer right and win a star; get it wrong, and we’ll still help you along the way. The game can be played in either one-player or two-player mode, with the latter encouraging parents and caregivers to play and learn together with their children.
LoserFruit videos
The Play Smart resource will be launched alongside a series of videos in collaboration with Australian gaming influencer LoserFruit, who outlines how children can play well online. In the videos, Kathleen Belsten, aka LoserFruit, talks about everything from online bullying through to screen time management and online safety in the gaming world. The videos will sit on the LEGO.com/kids site.
You can find Play Smart at www.LEGO.com/PlaySmartOnline, the Smart Dash game at ow live: www.lego.com/assets/city/games/smartdash/index.html and LoserFruit’s videos at www.LEGO.com/kids/digital-safety.
Notes to Editors
As a brand that’s all about play, the LEGO Group is dedicated to safety, whether children are engaging in a physical or digital play experience. As part of its commitment to protect children's rights online and foster their well-being the group introduced an industry-first Digital Child Safety Policy in 2016 to secure the safety and welfare of children interacting with LEGO digital products. It also co-created the ‘Child Online Safety Assessment’ tool (COSA) together with UNICEF, to help other companies understand and address children’s rights online.
The new tools and resources sit within the LEGO Group’s wider digital citizenship program which include:
• Story-style Build & Talk activities to support families with a playful way to engage in otherwise difficult conversations about digital safety topics whilst playing with LEGO bricks.
• Doom the Gloom experience giving children the opportunity to explore and learn how to stay safe online through a series of interactive videos and playful activities.
• Gloom Busters, launched in 2022, is the first LEGO video game specifically designed with the aim of helping children to learn good digital behaviours, for example online kindness.
• For more interactive guides, games and play activities designed to help parents and caregivers raise digitally smart families, visit: www.lego.com/sustainability/children/digital-child-safety
About the LEGO Group:
The LEGO Group’s mission is to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow through the power of play. The LEGO System in Play, with its foundation in LEGO bricks, allows children and fans to build and rebuild anything they can imagine. The LEGO Group was founded in Billund, Denmark in 1932 by Ole Kirk Kristiansen, its name derived from the two Danish words Leg Godt, which mean “Play Well”. Today, the LEGO Group remains a family-owned company headquartered in Billund. Its products are now sold in more than 130 countries worldwide. For more information: www.LEGO.com