A team called Teenangels is to join the Home Office taskforce on internet child protection. The aim is to teach children the fundamentals of online safety, including how to avoid criminals who prey on children using email, chatrooms and instant messaging.

The brainchild of Parry Aftab, a New York lawyer who specialises in security and privacy law, Teenangel chapters were first set up in the US in 1999 but the concept is now blossoming.

"We are already worldwide with hundreds of volunteers in the UK. We are very active there and are part of the Home Office taskforce on child protection," she told vnunet.com's sister publication Computeractive.

Teenangels are specially trained teams of 13 to 17 year-old volunteers working under the supervision of either a parent or teacher who is also trained in online safety. They offer advice from a teenager's perspective.

To join, each Teenangel must have signed parental consent and a letter of good standing from their school.

Aftab said that recruiting teenaged messengers "is a great way to teach kids who don't listen to adults as much as they listen to other kids".