Do you know about all of the data that’s share about your children? Take a look at this report from the Children’s Commissioner and start thinking about how and where your child’s data is leaking!
Author: Nick Speller
BBC covered the expensive report from Childwise which polled over 1000 parents for details on their pre-schooler’s internet use. The key facts are available from the BBC at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-45738280
Each year Safer Internet Day gets bigger and bigger, with 45% of young people hearing about the day in 2018. As the UK Safer Internet Centre, which organises the day, we are very excited about Safer Internet Day (SID)2019 which will take place on Tuesday 5th February 2019, with the global theme of ‘Together for a better internet’.
Childnet has a dedicated page https://www.childnet.com/resources/how-to-make-a-report where you can click a link to make a report about any issue you have on a range of online platforms. It’s a great starting place is you are experiencing issues…
So you’ve caved in to pressure from your child and either ‘handed-down’ an old Smart phone or purchased one specially. From my own personal experience this seems to be around the 11th birthday certainly with children around here.
The next question (if it hasn’t already arisen) is “Can I get… (insert current social media phenomenon here)?
All the organisations say the WORST thing you can do is just say no. We know this closes doors and often leads to children going behind their parents backs to get onto social media meaning we also cut off the main avenue for support for those same children if anything goes wrong.
I read a recent article which included some great prompts for parents to use when having this difficult conversation.
Take a look at this article on “Common Sense Media”.
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Yubo
Yubo is a chat app which used to be called “Yellow – Make New Friends”. It is a social media app for iOS and Android devices which children are starting to engage with. Through the app users create a profile, share their location, and flip through images of other users in their area. It’s been called the “Tinder for Snapchat“.
According to the app’s Terms & Conditions it’s for ages 13+ (because of the COPA law) however because of the HIGH levels of sexual content and availability of location details sites such as Common Sense Media have recommended it for 18+ and even their children reviewers suggest it is for 17+.
Netaware also have a review of the app and go with the app’s own rating of 13+, but emphasise the sexual nature of the app and the high risk of exposure to drink, drug and crime!
Fortnite is becoming a widespread talking point which many parents and schools are being drawn into. If you’ve not come across it before it’s what’s known as a ‘first-person shooter’! It’s very addictive and unlike many of its predecessors it runs on smart phones and tablets. Children can be drawn into playing it for long times and can play collaboratively or alone. Collaborative playing does feature contact with other players through chat which can lead to exposure to grooming and bullying online.
Lots of organisations have great information on Fortnite including https://www.commonsensemedia.org/app-reviews/fortnite
The NSPCC has information for families – https://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/keeping-children-safe/online-safety/online-games-helping-children-play-safe/
as does Internet Matters – https://www.internetmatters.org/advice/online-gaming/
If you want a sensational take on Fortnite then head over to the Sun!
There are not really specific resources for schools that address online gaming directly but the new Google offering https://beinternetlegends.withgoogle.com/en-gb/ might be of some use to schools.
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Be Internet Awesome
There are new resources from Google to help children understand how to behave online. The resource is called ‘Be Internet Awesome‘ and is available at https://beinternetawesome.withgoogle.com/. The resource includes fun online games around the themes of sharing (or not) online, spotting fake information and news, knowing when to and not to share secrets such as personal information and login details, how to behave in a kind way online and most importantly when to be brave and talk to someone else about an issue.
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Online Safety Day 2018
Create, Connect and Share Respect: a better internet starts with you!
That second day of the second week of the second month of the year sure does rush around fast these days, and as a CEOP Ambassador and also a 360 Degree Safe Assessor I’m getting quite booked up by schools in a frenzy to help their pupils (and wider community) understand something about the risks of the online world and how to help children avoid them!
Every year has a slightly different theme, and this year’s is ‘Create, Connect and Share Respect: a better internet starts with you’.
The idea that the internet belongs to all of us, so we are all responsible for what’s there, is an interesting point for a discussion. To help schools engage with pupils of all ages the UK Safer Internet Centre has created a range of resources, which focus on healthy online relationships and digital empathy, such as a Education Packs with engaging lesson plans, SID TV films, a quiz and advice pages.
Last year’s campaign reached 42% of all UK children, the aim is to make this year’s Safer Internet Day the biggest yet!
Resources for teachers can be downloaded from https://www.saferinternet.org.uk/safer-internet-day/2018/education-packs or you can find out more from the UK Safer Internet Centre at https://www.saferinternet.org.uk/
If you, or your school, are active on social networks then why not sign up for the Thunder Clap. The idea is to flood social media with the message about Safer Internet Day. You can find out more at https://www.saferinternet.org.uk/blog/join-2018-safer-internet-day-thunderclap
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Safer Internet Day 2018
Get prepared for Safer Internet Day!