Modern parenting increasingly focuses on keeping children safe online

With each year that passes, our lives become more dependent on technology and its seemingly limitless capabilities. As adults, we’ve learnt how to navigate online spaces safely and cautiously – but what about our children?

To shed some light on the situation, leading internet security provider, ESET, conducted a survey involving 2,000 parents on their approach to modern parenting, and the new rules they practise.

The parents – who have children between the age of 2 and 17 – were asked a wide range of questions  which they answered honestly and openly about the ways in which they try to keep their families safe. From sending nude images, to sharing sensitive information with strangers, the survey’s results provide an eye-opening insight into the challenges parents currently face.

A spokesman for ESET said:

Children can be at risk from things parents have no idea about, simply because it wasn’t something they grew up with. As well as learning basics from a young age such as how to cross the road, it’s also important children now learn how to stay safe online!”

Even though parents believe that traditional safety rules are still valid, there is no denying that new generations increasingly come with their own device-based threats. When it comes to technology, parents’ concerns over their kids have increased, with more than four in ten parents believing they are stricter with their children than their parents were. It appears that parents are also enforcing rules on a more frequent basis, with most giving their children eight warnings a week about staying safe online. Although this may seem excessive to some, whether or not children take on-board their parents’ advice is still debatable; with only 60% of parents thinking their children pay sufficient attention.

ESET’s spokesman suggests that the best approach is to speak to children very openly in order for them to take on board advice:

It’s important that we have an honest and mature conversation with our children to ensure everyone is safe when they’re online.”

The main findings from the survey have been transformed into a vibrant infographic which shows what the majority of parents’ concerns are, and highlighting the platforms which pose the biggest threats to their children.

For those seeking some extra guidance on how to keep their kids safe online, eight simple rules have also been provided based on the overarching themes shown in the answers. The rules feature key bits of advice such as:

1. Don’t open links in an email if you’re unsure who sent it.

  2. Never type anything in a text message you wouldn’t want your parents to read.

If parents would like to find out more about the survey and the safeguarding precautions they can take, they can visit ESET’s modern parenting page for more information.