Keeping children safe online

Every child deserves to feel safe and supported online. Being online is now part of everyday life for the vast majority of children. Data from Ofcom shows that nearly all children (99%) now spend time online, and that nine in ten children own a mobile phone by the time they reach the age of 11. It’s also clear that there’s a blurred boundary between the lives children lead online and the ‘real world’.

Three-quarters of social media users aged between 8 and 17 have their own account or profile on at least one of the large platforms. And despite most platforms having a minimum age of 13, six in ten children aged 8 to 12 who use them are signed up with their own profile.

However, almost three-quarters of teenagers between 13 and 17 have encountered one or more potential harms online, and three in five secondary school-aged children have been contacted online in a way that potentially made them feel uncomfortable. – (Ofcom, 2024)