"Online Behaviours for Young People": An Evening with Paul Litherland

Trinity College invites parents/guardians to "Online Behaviours for Young People": An Evening with Paul Litherland.

This is a FREE parent information night for parents from all Year Levels, exploring the topic of cyber safety and online behaviours. 

Paul is one of the nation's most recognised and highly awarded educators in the fields of Cyber Safety and Internet Awareness, culminating in him being named the 2022 WA Australian of the Year. Today, Paul works with over 850 schools and organisations across the country, with the demand for his services continuing to rise. Visit Surf Online Safe for more information.

This event is for parents/guardians only. Students not permitted

Times

• 6.00pm: Doors open/Guest arrival
• 6.30pm - 8.00pm: Formalities
• 8.00pm - 8.30pm: Q&A
• 8.30pm: Event concludes

Speaker information

Paul Litherland was a WA Police Officer for 20 years, working in a wide range of areas. From 2009 to 2014, he worked within the Technology Crime Investigation Unit; in this role, he was involved in criminal investigations including hacking, online sales fraud and romance scams, to cases involving international syndicates.

He also worked specifically with children (and their families) who were either the victims of online crime, or the offenders themselves. He dealt personally with the victims of cyber bullying, grooming and predatory behaviour as well as the perpetrators. He came to know all too well the heartbreak parents were going through, as well as how frustrated they were with how little care the online world seems to show kids. He felt driven to make change.

He realised there were limited resources available on the subject of internet awareness. During his time at Tech Crime I worked extremely hard in building his experience by working exclusively with teenagers and helping them understand the risks of the online world. He designed and conducted training packages for schools and other government organisations, but soon became frustrated at how poorly they were being delivered. He therefore set about targeting schools in his local area offering presentations personally, based on his experience, knowledge and insight into the dangers of the online world and what kids can do to protect themselves.

Since 2009, he has focussed on all aspects of teenage computer use, social networking design as well as the psychological profiles of teenagers and the offenders that prey on them. In 2014, he chose to leave the WA Police to pursue his dream of educating. And so, Surf Online Safe came into being. He has worked with schools directly over the past 21 years both as a police officer and as an educator and has a great rapport with kids of all ages. As a parent, Paul also adds that extra insight to his presentations as he is more than aware of the fear and apprehension parents have regarding the internet and the dangers that are out there.