The digital realm is rich with opportunities for our kids to explore, learn and connect. As parents, we don't want to stand in the way of that. But, it's also a Wild West when it comes to cybercrime. The 2022 Parent Guide for child online safety reports that 68% of child internet activity is not monitored by parents and 85% of parents are putting devices into their kids' hands just to keep them busy.
One of the biggest hurdles to keeping kids safe online is a parent's lack of knowledge of the cyberspaces where their kids are active. Many parents sanction their kids having social media accounts without much clue about how those platforms actually work. Some parents aren't aware that the games their kids play have online chatrooms where they are engaging freely with strangers.
There are parents who are unaware that recreational drugs are sold online to minors, or who think it's impossible that their kid may engage with pornographic or suicide ideation content. This raises the risks that their child could become a victim or even a perpetrator of cybercrime. It also flies in the face of data - Ofcom, the UK communications regulator, reported in 2019 that 79% of internet users aged 12 to 15 experienced at least one potentially harmful interaction online over a 12-month period.
As parents we instruct, guide and model behaviours for our children so that they can succeed and make a positive contribution to the world. We teach them all sorts of things to keep themselves safe and ensure they don't cause harm to others. Today, this vital parental role has to include the fast and ever-changing digital environment. Our kids are not just citizens in the physical world, they are digital citizens too. This demands that parents take a keen interest in ensuring that they are cyber-savvy and that they make good use of the latest cybersecurity tools that help to keep families safer.