Leaving Fear Behind, Today's Youth Tell the World: This is What the Good Side of the Internet Looks Like

CUPERTINO, Calif., May 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Trend Micro Inc. (TYO: 4704;TSE: 4704) today announced the winners of the company's fourth annual "What's Your Story?" contest, an international, award-winning video contest that empowers youth to be leaders in educating peers about being safe online. The contest provides youth an interactive platform to showcase not just their creative talents, but how they have harnessed the power and connection of the Internet in a positive way through creative storytelling. The 2013 contest received entries from both individuals and schools across the U.S. and Canada that answered the question -- "What does the good side of the Internet look like?" -- for a chance to win one of two $10,000 grand prizes.

The $10,000 individual grand prize goes to a team of high school students from Ottawa, Ontario. The group used collaborative talents in poetry and film-making to share a message about the ways the Internet has impacted the world. Their winning video, "I'm an Educated Dude," by Saad Sifate, George Strawbridge, and David Oladejo, features David performing an original narrative, addressing the opportunity for their generation to use the Internet for good.   

Ripley Union Lewiston Huntington High School, led by instructor Patty Ream, won the grand prize for best school entry. Inspired by a popular action-adventure video game series, Ream's students, seniors Jarrod Meyer and James Setty, created the video "Legend of the Responsible Gamer," taking viewers through several "quests" that illustrate the basic tenets of digital citizenship.

Sponsored and supported by Trend Micro Internet Safety for Kids & Families and a number of participating organizations, "What's Your Story?" was created to empower kids, parents, teachers and schools around the world to use technology in safe, responsible and successful ways.  The contest's unique quality is that it requires young people to become educated about being safe online, but also encourages them to become advocates of their own messages.  

To view all the winners of the 2013 "What's Your Story?" contest, visit: http://whatsyourstory.trendmicro.com

Runners up: Individuals

•  "The Internet Helped Me," by Matt Serra of Jacksonville, North Carolina
• "Lemonade," by Micah Bartel of Lake Oswego, Oregon

Runners up: Schools

•  "The Internet Was Created for Good," by Tricia Fuglestad and Dreyden Elementary School, Arlington Heights, Illinois.
• "Good Digital Citizenship," by Mike Scafati and The Meadowbrook School of Weston, Weston, Massachusetts.

"What's Your Story is far more than a contest, it's a way to engage today's youth to play an active role in shaping their own worlds, both online and off," said Lynette Owens, director and founder of Trend Micro Internet Safety for Kids & Families. "What I find most striking about this year's entries is that each finalist had a compelling and positive message to their peers that transcend cultural and geographical boundaries.  We are very proud of the thoughtfulness and creativity that went into each and every video." 

For this year's judging process, Trend Micro Internet Safety for Kids & Families again teamed up with some of the world's leading organizations that either provide kids access online or advocate for their safety. All share Trend Micro's vision and commitment towards Internet safety and the panel for 2013 included representatives from:

• NEW - Center on Media and Child Health
• NEW - Committee for Children
• Common Sense Media
• ConnectSafely
• Cyberbullying Research Center
• Facebook
• NEW - MediaSmarts
• Twitter
• Yahoo!

Finalists were selected based on a combination of views and ratings. Winners were chosen by the judging panel based on creativity, appropriateness and effectiveness. The grand prize winners in both the school and individual categories receive $10,000, and the runners-up receive $1,000 each.

For more information:

• To learn more about the contest, view the winning videos or see past winners, visit http://whatsyourstory.trendmicro.com 
• Follow updates to the contest on Twitter @TrendISKF, and stay on top of the discussion using #WYSContest.

Trend Micro's Commitment to the Internet Safety of Kids and Families

To support its vision of making the world safe for exchanging digital information, Trend Micro aspires to make a difference by using its expertise to make the world at large a better place.  Trend Micro has made a commitment to make the Internet a safer place for young people around the world through its world-wide employee volunteer program, grants and donations to eligible organizations, and partnerships with those who share its vision and mission.  For Trend Micro's free Internet safety tips, tools and advice, visit: www.trendmicro.com/internetsafety

About Trend Micro
Trend Micro Incorporated (TYO: 4704;TSE: 4704), a global cloud security leader, creates a world safe for exchanging digital information with its Internet content security and threat management solutions for businesses and consumers.  A pioneer in server security with over 20 years' experience, we deliver top-ranked client, server and cloud-based security that fits our customers' and partners' needs, stops new threats faster, and protects data in physical, virtualized and cloud environments. Powered by the industry-leading Trend Micro™ Smart Protection Network™ cloud computing security infrastructure, our products and services stop threats where they emerge – from the Internet. They are supported by 1,000+ threat intelligence experts around the globe. 

Additional information about Trend Micro Incorporated and the products and services are available at Trend Micro.com. This Trend Micro news release and other announcements are available at http://trendmicro.mediaroom.com/  and as part of an RSS feed at www.trendmicro.com/rss.   Or follow our news on Twitter at @TrendMicro.

SOURCE Trend Micro Inc.