The campaign will feature television for the first time, as the Home Office tries to reach an audience of teenage boys, not reached as easily as girls through other media.
The commercial, which has been seen previously in cinemas, was created by Ogilvy & Mather. It demonstrates how easy it is for anyone to claim to be someone else on the internet. It features a voiceover by a teenager, but lip-synched by an older man. The child's voice is heard talking about his hobbies, but as the camera pans back, it shows that the speaker is really an adult male.
The spot was created by copywriter Nigel Roberts and art director Paul Belford, although the pair have since left Ogilvy & Mather. The ad was directed by Gillian Wearing, through Colossal Pictures.
Hilary Benn, Home Office minister, said: "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 chat rooms."
The government is claiming that a similar campaign last year resulted in an 11% increase in awareness not to give out personal information online, and a 12% increase among parents of awareness of safety measures for children who surf the internet.
The ads will appear on television and radio starting today and will run until the end of the month. There will also be online advertising on teen websites and chat rooms running until the end of March, and there is a dedicated website, , which has been redeveloped.
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