In the next paragraph I will be interviewing my cousin Giulia asking her a few questions about how she accesses online websites.

Me: Hello Giulia, in honour of safer internet day I would like to ask you a few questions about what you think about this topic.

Giulia: Yes, of course, go ahead! 

Me: During Covid-19, since the whole world has been forced to stay at home, do you think more people have gone online over the past few months?

Giulia: Yes, I do think so. Because of the pandemic I’ve been accessing more websites and watching more videos and movies.

Me: Do you know if the way that you access websites to watch movies and videos is safe?

Giulia: Yes, I usually spend lots of time on YouTube or on Netflix, and, from what people say and what I’ve looked up online, they are both very safe websites.

Me: Do you ever use other websites that are known to be unsafe?

Giulia: Sometimes, if I can’t find a movie on Netflix or on Television, I usually stream movies online on pirate websites.

Me: Do you feel safe on these websites?

Giulia: Not really… I hear people often get viruses and/or get contacted by people they don’t know.

Me: Would you ever share personal data on these websites?

Giulia: Netflix has my credit card information, so yes. On YouTube I would never share any of my information in the comments, but on the other hand, I would share my credit card information if I were to sign up to a channel or sign up to the premium version of YouTube. Instead, I would never share any type of information on streaming websites which are illegal and have free access for anyone. The same goes for any type of websites I visit when looking up general information or, as a student, school related questions.

Me: When you access websites daily are you aware of the consequences that could occur?

Giulia: Of course I am. I always make sure I have a VPN or any other type of protection for my personal information.

Me: Thank you so much for participating! Remember to stay safe online!

Guia: Hello Chiara, I would like to ask you some questions about your connection with internet for the Safer Internet Day.
Chiara: Of course, I’m ready.
Guia: Thank you, let’s start right now. First, I want to ask you how often you connect, and if you think that internet has a good or a bad impact on your life.
Chiara: I connect very often, sometimes for school, but sometimes also for my pleasure, when I’m bored or when I have nothing to do. Honestly, I think internet has a good impact on my life, because it helps me very much when I have to study, but also a bad impact, especially when I spend too much time on my phone or on my computer, loosing track of time.
Guia: How do you think internet has affected your lockdown period during the pandemic?
Chiara: I think the internet had a good influence on my life during lockdown because it helped me to stay informed and to communicate with my friends and relatives, but, as I said before, it also had a bad influence because I spent too much time on social media without realising it.
Guia: You said that the internet has helped you stay informed. Which website did you use to know what was happening in your city, or in the rest of the world?
Chiara: I mostly used online newspapers, but also social media, such as Twitter.
Guia: Do you think the websites you visited were safe, did you feel unsafe while reading them?
Chiara: Regarding Twitter, I think it was safe because it’s pretty popular as an app, and almost everybody has it, so honestly I haven’t really thought about it. I can’t really say the same thing for online newspapers though, not because I got any virus or something while visiting them, but because they weren’t as popular as Twitter, and some of them didn’t look very safe.
Guia: How do you know if a website is safe or not?
Chiara: I’m not very good at this, but let’s say that sometimes it’s enough that a website is not popular to raise the question that it is unsafe, and I know it’s not a good reason but I think it’s better to pay more attention than we should, instead of getting viruses for not being careful enough.
Guia: Speaking about being careful, do you consider yourself a careful person when you have to share your personal data?
Chiara: Absolutely yes, I always pay attention to my personal data, and before sharing it, I have to be 100% sure that the website or even the app that I’m using is safe and reliable.
Guia: So I guess that you have thought about the consequences and possible problems that may arise.
Chiara: Of course, and I also think that a lot of people underestimate this problem, and don’t pay enough attention online.
Guia: I think so too. Thank you so much Chiara for answering my questions!

Chiara: My pleasure!

Sergio, 17 years old.

• How often do you use the Internet?

I use the internet on my phone and on my computer. I spend a lot of time on it because it keeps me in contact with my friends whenever I want. On my computer, I do homework and research for my school projects.

• Which sites do you visit?

Apart from sites related to education, I enjoy playing video games online with my friends in my free time using facetime, so it is closer. Besides, I am interested in informatics and this encourages me to enter related webs. I really hope to be a computer specialist one day.

• What sort of information and personal data do you share on the internet? Do you feel safe?

I try to share my life with others in a safe way, this only implies taking photos with friends and family. I admit this can be hard sometimes and we may act incorrectly putting in danger ourselves and the people around us. Being safe on the Internet is impossible due to the fact that we can not control everything, for example hackers and viruses. It is important to be alert.

• Have you thought about the consequences and possible problems? Have you had some problem or know someone who has?

The consequences that a problem on the internet with your personal information can cause are dangerous and terrifying. The Internet is an essential part of our daily life so we should be careful and aware of the riks. In my opinion, we are not prepared enough for dealing with difficulties. I luckily haven’t had any problem, although a friend of mine suffered from a hacker attack and had to be helped by the authorities.