Primary school children in Ireland most upset by experiences on YouTube and Roblox – CyberSafeKids
A quarter (25%) of primary school children (aged 8-12) and 21% of secondary school children (aged 12-14) have been bothered or upset by harmful content such as scams, harassment, horror, and sexual material online, according to new figures published this week in CyberSafeKids’ annual Trends & Usage Report 'Left To Their Own Devices'.
For 8–12-year-olds, this most commonly occurred on YouTube (37%) and Roblox (23%), even though Roblox is widely perceived as a child-friendly social gaming environment. For secondary school children (aged 12-14), Snapchat (41%) and TikTok (30%) were identified as the most common platforms where these negative experiences occur.
The report by Ireland's online safety charity – which surveyed over 7,000 children in academic year 2023-24 – found that 42% of 8–12-year-olds, and 62% of 12–14-year-olds do not talk to their parents about their online activity. It also shows that parents are even less involved in their children’s online lives than in previous years: 77% of 8–12-year-olds say their parents can't see what they are doing online and 83% can use devices in their bedrooms.
Less than half (43%) of primary school children reported having ‘mostly positive’ online experiences in the last year. YouTube (75%) WhatsApp (41%), Roblox (40%), Snapchat (36%) and TikTok (33%) are the most popular platforms for this age group.
35% of 8–12-year-olds can go online whenever they want, rising to 61% for 12–14-year-olds in secondary school. 38% of 8–12-year-olds gamed with strangers online. Almost 65% were contacted by a stranger during an online game. 55% of children aged 8 to 12 did not tell a parent when bothered, confused or upset by harmful content or unsolicited contact, rising to 63% for 12–14-year-olds.
The report's findings demonstrate how important the age of access, online safety education and family supervision are for children and young people. Negative experiences such as cyberbullying, seeing harmful content and unsolicited contact occurred less often for children who were supervised and made smart choices regarding their privacy, interactions and activities online.
Children granted unlimited access to the online world were more likely to have experienced cyberbullying than those who had time restrictions (33% vs 21%), as were those who had no rules at home around their online engagement (34% vs 23%). This highlights the dangers of reduced parental supervision, unrestricted access, and insufficient online safety education.
94% of 8–12-year-olds already have their own smart device with tablets (59%), gaming consoles (57%) and smartphones (49%) the three most popular devices respectively in this age group. 82% of 8–12-year-olds already have their own social media or instant messaging account, regardless of a minimum age restriction of 13 on most popular platforms.
Despite the emergence of ‘smartphone-free’ initiatives in schools in Ireland, it is now more common than ever before for an 11-year-old to own a smartphone: 59% own a phone vs 52% in 2022-2023. This rises to 74% by the age of 12. Time, resources and teacher training allocated to embedding online safety education and digital literacy across the curriculum are also crucial: 84% of teachers reported that online safety was a significant issue at their school (compared to 74% in 2022-23, 63% in 2021-22).
To help children thrive in the digital world, CyberSafeKids outlines three key recommendations in the report:
- Make age verification a mandatory requirement for access to online services and legislate for a minimum age at which online platforms can provide services to children.
- Make online safety and digital literacy the 4th pillar of the education system, both at primary and secondary levels.
- Deliver national public awareness campaigns and resources aimed at parents in Ireland to create social norms around online safety, including encouraging smartphone- free environments in schools.
CyberSafeKids’ annual Trends & Usage Report 'Left To Their Own Devices' is available to read here.