Kash Dash mobile game leads to over 7,000 clicks to online safety advice

A mobile game featuring Staffordshire police dogs which aims to help kids stay safe online has led to over 7,000 ‘click-throughs’ to safety advice.

The ‘Kash Dash’ app, which was featured on BBC Click’s ‘Education Special’, was designed by the Office of Staffordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner.

Its success is highlighted in a week when the All-Party Parliamentary Group For Children has spoken of the need for police to develop positive relationships with young people by communicating with them at their level.

The game features police dogs Emma and Jasper, and former police dog and force mascot Kash, and has had 3,329 downloads as well as prompting over 7,000 clicks on websites giving safety advice such as The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP), Safer Internet Centre and the Facebook Safety Centre.

Police and Crime Commissioner, Matthew Ellis, said: “We must find ways to better connect youngsters with information on how to stay safe online. Rather than asking them to find their way to us this game takes vital safety messages to them using technology which is familiar.

“We need to be smarter in how we engage and this new game seems to be working. It’s fun but includes serious messages”.

Chief Constable Jane Sawyers said: “Online safety is increasingly a major concern for parents and educating children in this area is a priority for the force.

“Police dogs are always popular with pupils when they visit schools as part of our work in local communities so combining them with online safety messages is a winning combination.”