EU officials are pushing a plan to make the Internet safer - more resistant to cyberattacks, freer from cybercrime and safer for children to use.

The proposal unveiled Thursday would require each of the European Union's 27 nations to designate an authority to prevent and respond to Internet risks and incidents.

It would require the operators of networks in critical areas, such as financial services, transport, energy and health, to adopt risk-management practices and report major security threats.

Neelie Kroes, the EU's commissioner for the Digital Agenda, said "the more people rely on the Internet, the more people rely on it to be secure."