The European Union has launched a 45 million euro ($60 million) plan to protect children from pornography and racist sites when they surf the Internet.

　　"Children are using the Internet more and more and can come across dangerous content. It's essential to inform parents what tools they can use," Viviane Reding, the European Information Society and Media Commissioner, told a news conference.

　　Around 60 percent of children regularly surf the Internet in Scandinavia and countries such as Britain, the Netherlands, Estonia and the Czech Republic, data issued by the European Commission on Thursday showed.

　　But most parents are not aware of the potential risks or do not know who to contact when they come across harmful content, Reding said.