Due to their unavoidable toxicity to non-target organisms, including man, the use of Plant Protection Products requires a thorough risk assessment to rationally advise safe use procedures and protection equipment by farmers. Most information on active substances and formulations, such as dermal absorption rates and exposure limits are available in the large body of regulatory data. Physically-based computational models can be used to forecast risk in real-life conditions (preventive assessment by 'exposure profiles'), to drive the cost-effective use of products and equipment and to understand the sources of unexpected exposure. © PI-ME, Pavia 2012.