Naples: Memorandum of Understanding signed for the Pilot Project “Prevention of crimes committed online and emergence of victims of the internet”

At the Council Hall of Palazzo San Giacomo the memorandum of understanding of the Pilot Project has been signed "Prevention of crimes committed online and emergence of victims of the network“. Promoted by the Ministry of Justice - Department for Juvenile and Community Justice, the project, which is being tested in Napoli to be extended to other territories, it aims to curb the dangers associated with the abuse of the web and social media, creating a integrated protection network for young people, potential perpetrators and victims of digital crimes such as cyberbullying, revengeporn, identity theft and digital scams, but also serious phenomena such as the child pornography and grooming.

In both large cities and small towns, social isolation has also been determined from improper use of the web , excessive search for visibility can lead young people to violent acts. Young people in metropolises are even more exposed to this risk, where crime takes advantage of youth vulnerabilities to gain its own advantage, also resorting to the use of the Internet to propose social disvalues.

The memorandum of understanding involves a broad institutional and Third Sector partnership, which will provide resources, skills and planning for raise awareness and make the new generations responsible for the risks associated with using the internet. The project not only aims to identify victims of digital crimes, but also aims to provide teenagers Tools to recognize online dangers, developing an education in digital security that can prevent the onset of risky behaviors. The project aims to involve schools and associations for curb juvenile deviance and build inclusion and prevention paths, helping to give young people positive models and opportunities for growth. An initiative, therefore, that not only responds to an urgent need, but lays the foundations for a cultural change, placing the training and protection of new generations at the centre.

The Director General of the Department for Juvenile and Community Justice, Alessandro Buccino Grimaldi, the Deputy Mayor of Naples, Laura Lieto, the President of the Juvenile Court of Naples, Paola Brunese, the Deputy Public Prosecutor at the Juvenile Court of Naples, Claudia DeLuca, the Director of the Operations Center for Cyber ​​Security in Naples, Gianluca Boiano, the Headmaster of the State Comprehensive Institute “Cesare Pavese – Nazareth”, Catherine Cernicchiaro, the General Secretary of the Rut ETS Foundation, Joanna Martelli and the Director of the Don Calabria Foundation for Social ETS Alessandro Padovani.

A three-year project for digital security

The project, which develops in a three-year time frame (2024-2026), provides, from the first year, the training of young facilitators who, through awareness raising activities in schools, will act as true ambassadors of online safety, spreading a culture of responsibility and digital awareness among their peers. At the same time, parents and reference adults They will be involved in training courses to prevent risky behavior and support young people in recognizing danger signs.

Alessandro Buccino Grimaldi, Director General of the Department for Juvenile and Community Justice, stressed: «This is an initiative to prevent deviance, an experimental intervention model that the Department intends to spread throughout the country. It is important to start from Naples, at a time of particular resurgence of violent actions of which minors are often victims and perpetrators. With this project, we intend to activate a structured intervention model to root a culture of digital safety and responsibility that, through collaboration between institutions and third sector actors, guarantees concrete tools for the emergence of victims and for the prevention of online crimes committed by minors. It is our duty not only to prosecute crimes, but to anticipate them, placing prevention at the center of our interventions. No one will be able to chase technological innovations, but with integrated actions we can help form a critical conscience in young people, the only one that can get there before technology».

"Today we are launching an innovative synergic action to develop strategies, methods and measures to counter the degenerative phenomena of digital platforms. The network - is the reflection of the mayor Gaetano Manfredi – was created to inform, connect and disseminate, however the web and social media can often easily turn into dangerous traps, especially for adolescents and children. Identifying the phenomena linked to the toxic dynamics of internet use is therefore a current and urgent issue, in light of the many news stories that see many adolescents and children as victims of the multiple dangers of the web. The improper use of these platforms must be identified and countered, both to avoid and to resolve the consequences of psychological distress and social isolation of victims of digital crimes. This is only possible through joint action that brings together institutions and civil society to ensure a safer and more protected digital environment».

For the Deputy Mayor Laura Lieto "It is essential to act on multiple fronts to address a social issue that affects us and that unfortunately produces, in some cases, tragic results. The protocol operates on a very important level, that of violence online, but it is also linked to the way young generations communicate. This Protocol is based on work that the Administration has dedicated itself to for a certain time and we could not foresee that this signature would fall at such a difficult time for the city with regard to youth violence. We believe that with this initiative we can have an impact because the construction of deviant cultural models and emulation phenomena passes through social media".

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