A £1 million Home Office advertising campaign has been launched to promote "safer surfing" for children on the internet.

Home Office minister Hilary Benn announced that the latest advertisements will feature on television for the first time, as well as on radio and online, and will run throughout January.

"The internet has opened up a new world for children which is educational, informative and, most of all, fun. But we are aware of the potential for paedophiles to misuse modern technology to abuse the trust that children place in them by attempting to 'groom' them through chatrooms," he said.

"Protecting children is a priority for us all. We are determined that Britain will be the safest country for children on the Internet."

Ministers point to previous campaign in 2001, which increased awareness among children of the dangers of online paedophiles by 11 per cent and by 12 per cent among parents

Parents are being advised to talk to their children about internet use, keep a "favourites" list of approved websites, and contact internet service providers about any safety features that may be available.

The campaign was welcomed by children's charities and the internet industry.

The chief executive of Childline, Dr Carol Easton, told the BBC that the charity received many calls from children who had been "very distressed by experiences they've come across on the net".

"They're putting themselves at risk and they've been abused as a result, so the dangers are real."

Nicholas Lansman, secretary general of the Internet Service Provider's Association, also backed the initiative.

"ISPA has worked together with the Home Office on the safe surfing awareness campaign. The adverts are a valued contribution to our members' ongoing work to educate parents and children on safer, educational, fun surfing," he said.

However, Dr Frank Furedi, professor of sociology at Kent University and author of "Paranoid Parenting", disagreed, arguing that the campaign was a waste of money.

"Sensible parents would tell their children how to behave in different circumstances. We don't need expensive gestures by the government...parents can inform them," he said.

"Every new technology has been portrayed as a new danger to children, from the time of the introduction of the bicycle to the introduction of movies and cinema."

"With the internet this has been amplified because quite often parents and adults are less able to surf the net than their children."