Online Safety
Did you know a child could be recruited to a gang from hundreds of miles away? More and more often young people are being groomed remotely to carry out ‘jobs’ in their community, for their exploiters who live on the other side of the country.
How have exploitation methods changed/become more hidden?
- Girls report finding it easier to travel around the county as they are challenged less than boys.
- Possible increased use of taxis/private hire vehicles by children being exploited.
- More exploitation happening at private addresses and unused business premises.
- Social media has replaced face to face interaction. Young people are craving to connect with others and unfortunately, this can lead to grooming.
It is important to remember that the victim, the child, is NEVER to blame. Online groomers can be very persuasive and children should never be made to feel they did anything to encourage their exploitation. The best response an adult can provide a child who has been a victim of online exploitation is to comfort them, be supportive and help them address the issues they have encountered.
And of course, it's not just about when things go wrong. You can help your child to stay safe by creating an environment in which they feel able to speak openly about concerns they may have. You can do this by making good internet habits a part of your daily lives by limiting screen time, no devices at dinnertime/bedtime and by taking an active interest in the games they're playing and their social media influences.
Thanks to everyone involved in creating resources for this campaign.
Parents of young children and pre-schoolers
You do not need to talk to your pre-schooler about online safety yet, right? Wrong. If you treat online safety just as you would treat road safety, then talking about safe internet use becomes the norm and not something that they feel needs to be hidden as they get older. So if they are worried about something they have seen online they can feel confident in talking to an adult about their concerns.
Short animation for parents and childcare providers
Young people - how to help a friend
Podcast for parents and carers
Parents of pre-teens
Did You Know... the number of children exploited online doubles between the ages of 11 and 12 years old? This means that those at the end of primary school, about to enter secondary school, are particularly at risk, especially as it is a time when some children begin to enter the world of social media. The brain development they are going through at this age makes it hard for them to make decisions or plan ahead. They get an increased drive for risk taking and trying out new things. They are super sensitive to social status and so they start craving peer approval.
Podcast by Barnardos CARE
Online Gaming
Did You Know... the security settings of off game chats are often not as good as those built into the game. Discord is a chat forum used by a lot of gamers and it is important to be aware that strangers can contact your child especially on public or large servers and send inappropriate, mean or sexual content. Find out more about Discord and how to keep your child safe. This video by James Pearson, Violence and Vulnerability Unit is all about gaming. He discusses why parents need to be aware that their child's chat can filter out of the game and onto other platforms and what they need to be discussing with their children to keep their online gaming an enjoyable experience.
Perpetrators are increasingly targeting children and young people via online gaming sites, pretending to be someone who they are not. This can often lead to bullying, grooming and sexual exploitation. The Breck Foundation is a self-funding charity, raising awareness of playing safe whilst using the internet. CEOP's Thinkuknow has launched Band Runner, an interactive game for 8-10 year olds to help build their knowledge, confidence and skills to stay safe from risks they might encounter online. The game is hosted on the area for 8-10 year olds on the Thinkuknow website. Internet Matters - Online Gaming (The Basics)
Sending nudes
There is no 'usual' stereotype, any young person could send a nude pic - even your child. Make sure they understand that it is illegal to send nudes, even of themselves. And if it happens, try to understand whether there is peer pressure or grooming involved. Taking, making, sharing and possessing indecent images and pseudo-photographs (an image made by computer graphics, which appears to be a photograph) of people under 18 is illegal. It does not matter how old they look, looking at indecent images of under 18s is illegal.
This podcast by The 2 Johns looks at why and how young people are drawn into taking and sharing inappropriate images. They discuss how both parents and young people may be feeling and how to have an empathetic conversation with your child, as well as practical advice on getting photos removed.
Childline's Zipit app, uses humour to help teenagers deal with unwanted requests for sexual images of themselves. The free app offers young people a gallery of images and animations which they can send in response to requests for sexual pictures and to deal with difficult sexting situations.
Sexting advice for parents - how to have those important conversations with children.
Videos and livestreams
Houseparty exploded in popularity during lockdown, but did you know is not automatically set to private? That means anyone could video call your child without them having to accept. Make sure your child knows to change their privacy settings. Find out more about Houseparty safety on NetAware. Livestreaming is becoming a very popular way for young people to broadcast themselves on many different apps, to communicate with their friends or wider community, just as their favourite celebrities and Vloggers do. Make sure your children understand the risks of livestreaming:-
- They cannot be edited
- You cannot erase what people have already seen
- Personal information might be given away by things said during the stream, things shown on camera or even in the background
- Livestreams can be recorded by others, who can then keep a copy even after the stream has ended or expired.
Find out more about livestreaming and staying safe
Making new technology safe - Violence and Vulnerability Unit
Online Bullying
Did You Know... just under half of those being investigated for exploiting other online, are children and most are the same age as the victim. If you are worried your child might have been a victim there is more information on how to get help on our bullying page.
Our online bullying podcast looks at the pressure from social media and the impact on young people. The 2 Johns talk about how parents can create a relationship with their child that encourages them to tell them about these issues and the support available.
Fake content
Deepfakes are swiftly proving the old age adage that "seeing is believing" is no longer necessarily true. They can put inflammatory words into the mouths of politicians and transplant Hollywood A-listers into X-rated movies. But more recently, deepfakes are moving beyond the celebrity bubble into the lives of ordinary members of the public - fuelling offences such as revenge porn and extortion.
National Online Safety have some useful guidance for parents about Deepfakes and online safety in general.
All About Apps
With children spending more and more time online over the last few months, there has been an explosion in popularity of certain apps and games. TikTok has soared in popularity in recent months, with many celebrities getting involved with dances and challenges. If your child using the App, make sure you know the risks involved and how to change privacy settings to private. NSPCC's NetAware has lots of information on how to make your child's social media secure and a detailed description of the most popular apps, sites and games. This printable guide from The Children's Society also has a list of the most popular sites and apps.
Conversation Starters
- "What's your favorite game? Can I play?"
- "Can you show me your favourite TikTok dance/YouTube video?"
- "Have you got online friends? How do you know who they are?"
Showing an interest in your child's online life will help them feel they are able to come to you with any concerns them may have.
NSPCC - Talking about online safety
Safer Internet - Talking about online safety
Parental controls and security settings
Parents and carers should be ensuring the settings of the apps and online games that their children use are set to private, with location setting turned off, to restrict the ways in which they could potentially be targeted by perpetrators. Many apps are public facing automatically, and have to be manually set to 'private'. You can use parental controls to help you block or filter the content your child sees when searching online. Parental controls are also available to help you to:
- plan what time of day your child can go online and how for
- stop them from downloading apps they are too young for
- manage the content different members of the family can see
It is important to bear in mind that children and young people can potentially have access to the internet anywhere, not just at home. There are wifi hotspots, internet cafes, friends houses and of course mobile data is available 24/7. So whilst parental controls are useful, the most important thing you can do is have an open and inquisitive relationship with your child about their online interests.
Find out more about setting up Parental Controls
Reporting Concerns
You can report online abuse through the Child Exploitation and Online Exploitation Protection Centre (CEOP) website or the Internet Watch Foundation. Or report anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
If you are concerned about a child in Thurrock, call 01375 652802 or 01375 372468 (out of hours).
If you are concerned about a child in Essex, call Children & Families Hub (Social Care): 0345 603 7627 or 0345 606 1212 (out of hours).
If you are concerned about a child in Southend, call 01702 215007 or 0345 606 1212 (out of hours).
If a child is in immediate danger, dial 999 and ask to speak to Police.
Useful Links for Parents
Useful Links for Young People
Useful Links for Professionals