Esafety Commissioner

eSAFETY commisioner – ‘Mind the gap: parental awareness of children’s exposure to risks online’  https://www.esafety.gov.au/research/mind-gap

Children aged 8 to 17 are engaging in beneficial activities online.

Children are going online to learn, play and socialise:

• 87% watched video clips
  •    79% completed schoolwork
  •    67% searched for and learnt something new
  •    61% played games alone
  •    56% played games with other people
  •    51% used social media
  •    31% looked at news
  •    19% created and posted their own video or music
  •    16% posted their own story or blog
  •    13% discussed political or social problems.

Children are seeking health information and emotional support online:

•  17% – physical health information
  •    13% – mental health information
  •    13% – emotional support.

However, children also face risks online.

The majority of children talk to strangers online: 

•  55% communicated with someone they first met online
  •    12% met someone face-to-face after first getting to know them online.

Many children have negative experiences online …

•  45% have been treated in a hurtful or nasty way
  •    26% have treated someone in a hurtful or nasty way
  •    11% have experienced hate speech
  •    9% had their personal information posted without their consent.

… and experience significant impacts.

•  55% felt sad
  •    43% felt angry
  •    38% didn’t feel good about themselves
  •    33% felt left out / lost friends
  •    20% felt helpless, powerless
  •    17% their mental health was affected.

Children know what to do, and feel empowered to act, when they have a bad experience online.

Almost all children take action in response to a negative experience:

•  67% told their parents
  •    63% unfriended or blocked someone
  •    55% tried to get the other person to leave them alone
  •    50% deleted messages
  •    41% changed their privacy or contact settings.

(Source: Online survey of 3,590 children in Australia aged 8–17, conducted July–September 2021. Data relates to the 12 months to July–September 2021. For online activities listed above, percentages indicate children who engaged in these weekly or more often, in the past 12 months.)