Summary

This year’s Safer Internet Day was all about creating awareness of online safety for children. Usiku Games was one of the companies that participated in the event. We launched Cyber Soljas, a fun adventure mobile game for kids that helps them identify, avoid and combat online threats.

The internet has been around for a long time. The early days of the internet were in the 1960s when government researchers in the United States created a way to share information. During this time, computers were huge, which created a logistical nightmare to move them around. You either had to travel to the location of a computer to gain access to information or use the postal services to deliver floppy disks.  The onset of the Cold War is what accelerated the invention of the internet as we know it today. The united states defense department was looking for ways to disseminate information even after a nuclear attack. The solution was Advanced Research Projects Agency Network, the network that eventually morphed into the internet. Fast-forward to 2022, the internet is at the center of humanity. The internet has numerous benefits but its downside to some extent outweighs its advantages. The most vulnerable section of the population is the children. 

Safer Internet Day

Access to the internet has to be one of the greatest things to happen to humanity. A simple click opens a new digital world full of all kinds of information, good and bad. For adults, it’s easy to navigate the internet. However, children, constantly fall victim to identity theft, cyberbullying, phishing to name a few. Their safety when accessing the internet is never a guarantee. To address such issues and emerging ones, Safer Internet Day was created. The objective is to create awareness of emerging online issues and current concerns to make a better internet for kids.  This year’s Safer Internet Day was observed on Tuesday, 8 February. 

Cyber Soljas 

It was a special day for many reasons, but for Usiku Games, we launched Cyber Soljas, a fun adventure mobile game for kids that help them identify, avoid and combat online threats. The game was designed and developed in partnership with the Communication Authority of Kenya.  How do we protect kids online, from Cyber Bullying, Fake News, etc? These online dangers have become very real with today’s easy online access. Kids need to be taught how to protect themselves, what to look out for when to inform their parents or teachers when something seems suspicious or worrying.

Our Solution was Cyber Soljas an action-packed game that will teach kids, young and old, how to recognize threats and how to fight them. The game will help children identify and deal with online dangers such as identity theft, fake news, cybercrime, and cyberbullying and get to know common terms such as phishing, pharming, hacking, and filtering. 

The launch 

We couldn’t have asked for a better day and event to launch Cyber Soljas. The Movenpick Hotel, Nairobi was the venue for this colorful event. In attendance were journalists, kids from different schools, Communication Authority of Kenya officials, media, and Usiku Games’ CEO, Jay Shapiro.