A new law aims to protect children from online harm by requiring social media and gaming apps to implement stricter age verification methods and remove harmful content more quickly.
Keeping Your Child Safe Online: A Guide for Parents
The Importance of Online Safety for Children
As a parent, it’s natural to worry about your child’s online safety. With the rise of social media and the internet, children are exposed to a vast array of content that can be both entertaining and potentially hazardous. According to Ofcom‘s research, 59% of 13- to 17-year-olds have seen ‘potentially harmful content‘ online in the previous month.
Online safety refers to measures taken to protect individuals and organizations from cyber threats, including hacking, phishing, and identity theft.
It involves using secure connections, strong passwords, and up-to-date antivirus software.
According to a report by the FBI, in 2020, there were over 1 million complaints about online harassment.
In addition, the average person has around 100 online accounts, making it essential to use unique passwords for each account.
Online safety is crucial for both personal and professional purposes.
The Online Safety Act: A New Era for Child Protection
The Online Safety Act is a new law aimed at protecting children from online harm. It requires social media, search, and gaming apps and websites to implement stricter age verification methods, change algorithms to filter out harmful content, and remove identified material more quickly. Failure to comply can result in fines of up to £18m or 10% of global revenues.
The Online Safety Act is a regulatory framework aimed at protecting users from online harm.
Enacted in various countries, it requires social media platforms and online service providers to ensure user safety.
Key provisions include moderation of content, reporting mechanisms for abuse, and transparency in data handling.
The act also mandates age verification for children and vulnerable adults.
By implementing these measures, the Online Safety Act aims to create a safer online environment.
What Does the Act Cover?
The Online Safety Act covers a range of topics, including:
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Preventing young people from encountering the most harmful content relating to suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, and pornography
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Protecting children from misogynistic, violent, hateful, or abusive material, online bullying, and dangerous challenges
- Requiring firms to show they are committed to removing illegal content, including child sexual abuse, controlling or coercive behaviour, extreme sexual violence, promoting suicide or self-harm, selling illegal drugs or weapons, and terrorism
The Impact on Children’s Mental Health
Children spend an average of two to five hours online per day, with nearly every child over 12 having a mobile phone. However, research suggests that half of the 13-year-olds surveyed by the Children’s Commissioner reported seeing ‘hardcore, misogynistic‘ pornographic material on social media sites.
Children's online behavior is shaped by their age, cognitive development, and social interactions.
Research suggests that children as young as two years old can exhibit online aggression.
A study found that 60% of children aged 10-12 reported experiencing online harassment.
Children's online behavior is also influenced by parental involvement, with 70% of parents monitoring their child's online activity.
Understanding child online behavior is crucial for developing effective strategies to promote digital literacy and online safety.
The Role of Parents in Online Safety
While technology companies have a responsibility to protect children online, parents also play a crucial role. The NSPCC recommends that parents talk to their children about internet safety and take an interest in what they do online. Two-thirds of parents say they use controls to limit what their children see online, but one in five children are able to disable these controls.
Additional Measures for Parents
Parents can also take additional measures to keep their child safe online:
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Using parental controls to limit access to explicit websites and apps
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Monitoring browsing history and online activity
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Having open conversations with their child about online safety and digital citizenship
- www.bbc.co.uk | How can you keep your child safe online?
