Protect yourself against internet intimidation with the Online Hate First Aid Kit

DeGoedeZaak: a progressive citizens' movement

"We set up DeGoedeZaak four years ago, because we saw that more and more citizens were fighting for social change outside the context of political parties and other established organisations," says Jurjen. "Our organisation is an ally to citizens working to create a fair, inclusive, sustainable and democratic society. DeGoedeZaak supports such people with their campaigning. For example, we give information and advice, access to our petition platform and the opportunity to extend their reach via our mailing list. By doing so, we enable people to get on with campaigning, rather than devoting time to peripheral and organisational matters. We also enable people to support citizens' campaigns on a low-threshold basis and boost their reach. The campaigners themselves always retain ownership of their campaigns, though." "People who speak out on social issues are often confronted by online hate. Large groups and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are able to plan for the risks associated with campaigning and take security precautions. However, if an individual citizen wants to raise an issue, they face significant challenges," explains Jurjen. "A journalist, social change leader, politician or activist confronted by online hate wants information about the attack they are facing and what to do about it. I feel we have a responsibility not only to help campaigners run their campaigns, but also to help them cope with any backlash. That was the thinking behind the Online Hate First Aid Kit, which we started developing in 2020."

Online Hate First Aid Kit toolkit

"We teamed up with a researcher to start a qualitative study of online hate and its influence on activists and social change leaders in the Netherlands. That involved, for example, discussions with people in our network who had been victims of online intimidation. We also interviewed experts, including experience experts, data scientists, an ethical hacker and journalists who specialise in online networking. The findings enabled us to distinguish between attacks by individuals and more concerted and dangerous attacks. Notably, the threshold to engaging in online hate is low, and many attacks are organised. What's more, the people we spoke to felt threatened not only online, but also in the real world. In practice, it's quite easy for a hate campaign to escalate from online intimidation to confrontation in the street or publication of a change leader's address, for example. Understandably, that's difficult for an activist to deal with." "All the insights, results and possible solutions identified by our research were discussed with a design agency called Multitude, who helped us translate everything into a practical online toolkit. The outcome is a very useful resource that's available to anyone who wants to protect themselves against the online hate they are facing. The toolkit explains what online hate is, who is responsible for spreading it, how you can recognise a coordinated attack, where you can get support and how you can keep your personal details safe. It has also contributed to political debate about what society can do to make the online space safer. Possibilities include withholding personal contact details from public Trade Register information. If we want society to be multicultural and inclusive, with freedom of expression, we have to ensure that people can express their views safely," argues Jurjen.

Support from SIDN Fund

SIDN Fund supported the project in the context of its call Public Values in a Digital Society, organised with the aim of improving the information position of the individual in our democracy. "Support from SIDN Fund enabled us to devote sufficient time to the project, particularly the research phase. Like us, SIDN Fund believes that it's important that the internet is safe for everyone to use. The Fund therefore works to build a strong internet for everyone. In addition, both the Fund and SIDN itself have large contact networks of people who know about online security, and were able to put us in touch. It was also very good to be surrounded by people working on other projects that, like ours, were concerned with public values in our digital society."

Mieke van Heesewijk, Programme Manager at SIDN Fund, explained what attracted the Fund to the initiative. "The internet has enriched our lives in many positive ways. However, we can't deny that there are negative sides to the internet's influence and that some things get out of hand on line. In the Online Hate First Aid Kit, DeGoedeZaak has developed a practical toolkit that anyone can use to protect themselves against online hate and trolling. The project also attracted a lot of media attention, which got people talking about online hate."

Discussing a safe offline and online environment

"I see our practical toolkit as the starting point for discussions with community organisations about the safety of social change leaders, both online and in the real world. I think it would be good if groups such as climate activists clarified who is threatening their safety. And if they got together to discuss how to respond to climate deniers, resistance and intimidation. DeGoedeZaak plays an important role in bringing various social groups together. We're also looking for a way of enabling people facing similar issues to contact each other safely. In the world we live in, it's increasingly important that people are able to make their voices heard and to bring about positive social change. Everyone calling for change that would be beneficial to society should be able to express themselves without fear," says Jurjen. Check out the online toolkit, follow the staged plan and read more about online hate at www.eerstehulpbijonlinehaat.nl. Got an idea for the toolkit? Send it to DeGoedeZaak at onlinehaat@degoedezaak.org.