Netsafe

Netsafe was founded in 1998 by a group of individuals and organisations concerned at the impact that the internet may have on young people, as the Internet Safety Group. It was rebranded to Netsafe in 2008.[3]

In 2017, Netsafe created a back-and-forth email chatbot, called Re:scam, which asks scammers never-ending questions with the intention of wasting the time of scammers, and ultimately reduce their number of victims. It simulates grammatical errors and humour to make it more believable.[5]

On 29 July 2021 Netsafe had a meeting with executives from Facebook, Twitter and TikTok in efforts to design a code of practice for online safety. It was anticipated that the draft be completed by Christmas of the same year.[6]

In May 2022 Brent Carey became CEO.

In 2023, Netsafe's Youth Action Squad created a toolkit providing information about educating people about issues involving sextortion, cyberbullying, privacy, pornography, and problematic gaming behaviours.[7]

In late July 2023, Netsafe launched its campaign on sextortion which is a worsening global issue affecting young people and adults. [8]

In September 2023, Netsafe's helpline won best not-for--profit call centre. [9]

In March 2022, Netsafe was ordered to pay $100,000 in damages to three women for a privacy breach involving a stalker.[10][11][12] That year, a second case involving alleged bullying was settled confidentially.[10]

The New Zealand Police appointed Netsafe as the approved agency for the Harmful Digital Communications Act. In this position, the agency receives and accesses complaints about harmful communications, investigates complaints, attempts to resolve complaints, forms relationships with foreign and domestic service providers, and provides education and policies on online safety.[3][13] It was announced by Justice Minister Amy Adams on 1 June 2016.[13][14]