A team of “Internet Angels,” recruited as volunteers by the Greek Consumer Organization (EKATO) to make the Web a safer environment for children to explore, has led police to dozens of sites containing pornography, violence, racism and other unsuitable material, EKATO said yesterday.

Most of the volunteers are aged under 18 and have been trained for their role following the consent of their parents, EKATO President Tania Kyriakidi told Kathimerini.

Since the project was launched in 2004, the volunteers have led EKATO to 200 suspect sites, the most worrying of which were forwarded to the police’s electronic crime squad, she said. The rest were reported to Insafe, a European Commission-funded project to promote Internet safety for children which was also the inspiration behind the Greek project.

Often “Internet Angels” monitor chat rooms for “suspicious” conversations, Kyriaki said.

“But they are not spies, just Internet users who can protect others from pitfalls,” she added.