Calls from children with a desire to harm themselves or with suicidal thoughts are increasing in 2025 to the Advisory Line 124 123. This was announced by the Safer Internet Center.
The Center reports a specific case in which a consultant reported to the police and social services about the location of a 9-year-old child who sought help on the phone 124 123. The consultant remained on the line with the child until the authorities found him and managed to prevent a fatal outcome.
On the occasion of World Safer Internet Day – On February 10, the Center announced that last year, data showed an increasing activity of parents in seeking support and a continued fight against online bullying and sexual exploitation.
The number of parents and teachers seeking help increased by 16%. This is 42 percent of all calls. The second largest group that turns to the advisory line or online chat are teenagers between the ages of 11 and 18, as they are 40% of all callers.
The most vulnerable group in cases of online bullying are children between the ages of 11 and 13, according to data from the Center for Safer Internet. Blackmail with nude photos and videos mostly affects girls between the ages of 13 and 16. The problem of misuse of personal data and digital identity, online crimes and fraud, as well as children's access to harmful content on the web remains very serious.
The platforms where children most often encounter problems in our country are Instagram, TikTok, Discord, Facebook/Messenger and Viber.
SafeNet.bg also processes the signals it receives through the Hotline for reporting sexual extortion and pornographic materials. In the vast majority of cases, a signal leads to the disclosure of platforms and addresses with a large volume of similar materials (photos and videos), which the Center also processes and reports. The materials disclosed and processed in 2025 are over 3,500,000. This is again a twofold increase compared to the previous year. For nearly 6% of the disclosed materials, SafeNet has reported to the Bulgarian investigative and law enforcement authorities as being hosted on IP addresses in Bulgaria. The remaining over 3.5 million are directed to INHOPE – the international network of hotlines.
In 2025, the Safer Internet Center reached a new 40,000 people through educational activities.
On the occasion of Safer Internet Month, the Safer Internet Center has released a special material - "Top 5 Red Flags for an Online Problem". This is a short and simple guide for children and parents and can now be downloaded from the Center's website - safenet.bg.