How can I stop my child from experiencing online sexual harassment?
The way others behave online is not something you can control, but what you can do is to is to make sure that your child knows where to go to get support.
- Make conversations about the internet a part of everyday routine.
- Be curious and excited about the internet with your child. This helps them see you as someone they can talk about online problems with.
- Discuss what a healthy friendship should feel like online. What is okay for a friend to say or do online, and what isn’t okay?
- Give your child ways they could say no or get out of an uncomfortable online situation.
- Make sure they know they can ask for help from an adult.
- Look at the safety tools on your child’s apps and games together. You can block and report other users on almost all of these, and some include features such as blocking certain words or profanity filters. Find out more on Internet Matters Social Media guides and Cybersmile’s Gaming Help Centre.
- Explore parental controls on your child’s devices and your home internet connection. You can do things such as block adult content and control screen time. Find out more at Internet Matters.
How do I stop my child from doing it to others?
- Make conversations about the internet a part of everyday routine.
- Be curious and excited about the internet with your child. This helps them see you as someone they can talk about online problems with.
- Teach respect and empathy from an early age, so that kindness becomes ‘the norm.’
- Just as you would teach your child how to be polite and kind at school or with family, extend this expectation to online life too.
- Talk about asking permission before posting things or sharing things, so your child understands this is an important part of online friendship.
- Give your child opportunities to talk to you about sex, puberty and other things they find confusing, rude or funny, so that you can give them the right information in a healthy way. Visit Family Lives for information on how to do this.
- Agree as a family on how you use the internet and technology. Set some boundaries and expectations using our Family Agreement. You might decide that for your child to be able to use some sites and apps, you need to check in on their accounts from time to time.
- Encourage your child to actively support others online and know how and where to report anything worrying or upsetting.