Introduction

This book evidences the cyclical failures of online safety policy and challenge conventional policy and educational approaches to tackling online harms, and provide a robust argument for a critical, evidence-based approaches which align with the needs of those we claim to wish to protect. It argues for a move away from knee jerk, headline grabbing and subjective policy development. In drawing parallels from the drug policy world, contrasting the increasingly progressive and evidence based policy making in this space compared to prejudiced, emotive developments in online harms.