Brussels  - The European Union is to spend 55 million euros (70 million dollars) over the next five years to make the internet safer for children, officials in Brussels said Tuesday.

Three quarters of children aged under 17 in the EU have access to the internet, and half of all 10-year-olds have a mobile phone, making it vital to protect them against online bullying and harassment.

"We need to make sure that whenever (children) use online or mobile services, they can recognize potential risks and deal with them," EU telecoms commissioner Viviane Reding said.

According to an agreement between EU member states, the bloc is to spend 55 million euros between 2009 and 2013 on projects aimed at boosting public awareness of the risks children face of going online.

The funding, which EU member states will be expected to match, is also aimed at setting up hotlines for reporting illegal and harmful internet content, such as online bullying and sexual harassment and enticement.

The proposal came as the EU's polling body, Eurobarometer, reported that close to two-thirds of European parents feared that their children could be exposed to online sexual enticement, pornography or violent images.

More than half also said that they feared their children could be subject to online bullying.

The survey interviewed 12,750 parents across all 27 EU member states between October 9 and October 17. (dpa)