According to preliminary research findings presented on Safer Internet Day, children regularly engage with individuals they don’t know online and behave cautiously when approached. However, they want tech companies and governments to do more to keep them secure.
The Tech Coalition Safe Online Research Fund’s online safety investment vehicle, Safe Online, provided funding for the research, which was carried out by Save the Children and Western Sydney University’s Young&Resilient Research Center.
In order to gather information about the opinions and experiences of 597 children and young people in Australia, Cambodia, Finland, the Philippines, Kenya, South Africa, and Colombia who are between the ages of 9 and 16, Young&Resilient held workshops with them.
Early findings from the ‘Protecting Children from Online Grooming’ study show that when it comes to handling online encounters with strangers, children frequently rely on their gut feelings and background checks rather than asking trusted adults for help.
The internet creates new hazards with strangers, even if the majority of the harm people experience online comes from people they know.
86% of children approach people they don’t know with caution, according to the study. Despite this warning, kids are still three times more likely to reject or ignore inappropriate solicitations than to report or stop them.
Not every child is at risk from cyberspace. A notable difference between high- and low-income families is shown by the study.
Richer children are twice as likely to use privacy settings for security, whereas less wealthy children are 35% less likely to restrict unsolicited communications.
More than half of children who talk about internet safety prefer to talk to their parents about it, highlighting the need of caregiver assistance in online safety education.
Only ten percent think about approaching the police or teachers. Young people want that digital businesses take further steps, such account verification, in-app training, and age limitations.
