Parents Are Clueless About Their Children’s Social Media Safety

There’s no excuse for being oblivious to what your children get up to on social media. But, according to new research from Equifax, 80 per cent of UK parents have no idea what their children get up to on social media platforms.

The study surveyed over 1000 parents and children aged between 8-16 years of age. Results showed that just 30 per cent of parents are friends with or follow their child on social media.

A staggering 80 per cent of parents said they never checked their child’s devices to see what they were sharing on the internet. And, worryingly, 30 per cent of parents thought that once a photograph had been deleted from a social media profile it was gone for good.

The research was undertaken ahead of Safer Internet Day, which falls on Tuesday 06 February this year.

Internet safety expert from Young Enterprise, Russell Winnard says: “If parents are not regularly checking their children’s smartphones or tablets – not just the posts visible to those parents who do actually follow their accounts – they could be missing vital clues. Some parents believe they are doing their bit by following their children’s accounts, but this does not take into account the fact that a child could be putting themselves at risk with the information, messages and content they send and receive privately.

This year, Safer Internet Day is focusing on the theme of ‘Create, Connect and Share Respect – A better internet starts with you’, highlighting the important role parents play in maintaining a safe online environment for their children. And the new Equifax commissioned research underlines that parents, as well as children, need to educate themselves on the risks and the preventative measures they can take to protect their family.”

Parents wishing to find out ways to keep their children safe on social media can find a free downloadable guide: https://www.equifax.co.uk/resources/identity_protection/internet-safety-guide.html

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