Parents teach children to avoid talking and any interaction with strangers on the street, but few people can control their acquaintances in social networks and online games. A new study shows how adults underestimate the dangers of such communications. /uploads/2023/03/4ee712fb61bf3bed84090660e6bf334c.jpg» />
The public organization CyberSafeKids Ireland has been investigating cybercrimes against children and ensuring the safety of minors on the global network for twenty years. Experts presented the results of a large-scale study that assessed changes in children's Internet activity during the pandemic.
The study was conducted on the basis of detailed surveys, which were attended by about 4,000 schoolchildren 8-12 years old in Ireland. In particular, experts studied factors that could potentially create a dangerous situation for a child, primarily online communication with strangers. It turned out that 36% of participants regularly play online games with strangers. This is 16% more than in 2019, which clearly indicates the growing popularity of online entertainment during the pandemic, experts say.
In addition, 93% of children have their own smartphones, and 84% actively use social networks, despite the age limit of 13+. The most popular apps were YouTube (74%), TikTok (47%), WhatsApp (39%) and Snapchat (37%).
CyberSafeKids specialists note that due to the pandemic, digital technologies have become central in the lives of teenagers, and parental control over children's online activity is weakening. About 30% of the study participants reported that they can go online at any time, and 13% admitted that there are no rules and restrictions on the use of smartphones and computers in their home.
The researchers also asked if teens had to hide from their parents the fact of watching any content, and 22% of the participants answered in the affirmative. Another quarter of respondents reported that they periodically encounter content that upsets and scares them, but only half (54%) decided to talk about it with adults.
Another 30% of teenagers said that they prefer to keep yourself any negative experiences in connection with your activity on the Internet. The researchers stressed that this is very disturbing data — before the pandemic, only 20% of children refused to share such information with adults. p>
“It is important to remember that the online environment is not always safe and appropriate for children. It is very difficult to convince a child not to communicate with strangers on the Internet, since game developers often encourage such a practice,” CyberSafeKids experts warn.
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