A series of classes on keeping safe from online threats were held by British experts on island this week.

The Ministry of Youth, Social Development and Seniors hosted two members from the South West Grid for Learning, a British charity specialising in online safety.

The instructors taught the safe use and monitoring of social media as well as the internet.

Tinée Furbert, the Minister of Youth, Social Development and Seniors, said: “I believe our education training and legal frameworks must keep pace with our growing reliance on the internet to protect Bermuda’s most vulnerable population groups.”

The programme was funded by the UK Foreign Commonwealth Development Office.

Boris Radanovic and Kate Worthington held training sessions on how to stay safe, report harmful behaviours and hold strong against manipulation and threats.

Classes were directed at middle schools, non-profit organisations and government ministries and departments working with children.

A special class went to social workers and children’s counsellors, while parents were invited to an online virtual training session.

Ms Furbert said that the classes could also prove valuable to seniors.

She said that the idea came from attending a UK conference where the chief executive officer of South West Grid for Learning gave details from the UK Safer Internet Centre.

She added: “I knew that this information needed to be shared with Bermuda at a wider level.”

The Department of Public Prosecutions has seen a rise in complaints from young people on the sharing of intimate photographs.

This came despite an amendment to the Criminal Code Act 1907 in June 2021 that made it a crime to distribute intimate images of another person without their consent.

Ms Furbert said it could lead to reputational damage, relationship disruption and emotional stress that could spiral into suicidal ideation.

She said such situations were “stressful, traumatic and have a far-fetching impact on families”.

They could include cases of images taken and shared without consent, and “sextortion, which is webcam blackmail”.

She said the training sessions would underscore “Bermuda’s revenge porn legislation already in place, encourage greater collaboration between non-profit entities serving children and adults with support services, and raise awareness for the general public”.