There are a growing number of studies investigating online risk
behaviours among young people. A large U.S. cross-sectional survey
of 1,500 10 - 17 year olds (Ybarra et al. 2007) revealed four key
online behaviours presenting risks. The Bridging the Digital Divide
Research conducted by the Inspire Foundation, results echoed those from
the Ybarra study and identified a number of additional risks;
together these included:
- Disclosure of personal information
- Cyber bullying / harassment
- Meeting up with online people in the real world
- Profile hacking / account hijacking
- Viruses, spy ware and spam
- Phishing scams
- Fees / costs (e.g. getting ripped off on eBay)
It is important to note that the level of risk for each young
person varies considerably and is ultimately the product of a
complex set of interrelated factors, including internet literacy
and skills, age, internet access and overall coping skills.
(Livingstone & Bober 2005).
As young people are increasingly turning to the internet to meet
new people and share their lives via the web, it is important that
they have the knowledge to make safe choices about the information
they are sharing and the skills to manage risky situations.
How to talk to young people about online safety
Our experience of engaging young people around online safety is
that they are more willing to talk about the risks if you
understand the world they occupy online and are not only trying to
restrict their access. This means engaging them in a discussion
around the issue rather than setting rules up front.
A strengths-based approach, which many practitioners use when
working with young people to improve their mental health and
wellbeing, can be helpful here - by focusing on the solutions
rather than the problems.
We recommend you start a conversation with a young person about the
technology, the opportunities it presents for them and then
introduce discussion about risks associated with their use and the
strategies that can be used to minimise these risks.
Some of these tips will require a bit of "technical know-how",
so if you are unfamiliar with how to take some of these actions,
ask a young person you know who is tech-savvy… Remember if young
people are using this technology in their daily lives then they are
the experts on the risks associated with them and in most cases
have employed many of the harm minimisation strategies identified
below through experience with their own use.
Don't feel embarrassed by asking young people for help with online
issues - for many it is an opportunity for them to show you
something they are good at; which is often empowering and is a good
way to break down barriers.
Tips on dealing with young people and their use of the
iInternet
The internet is a valuable tool for homework and projects for
young people, as well as an integral aspect of their social
networking. At the same time, young people start to become more
independent and self-assured, wanting more freedom and coming under
more peer influence. Their online and email contacts tend to expand
rapidly and sometimes without much filtering. Some may view the use
of filtering or blocking software as an attempt to take away
their freedom.
- Ask them about their internet networking and what they use it
for in an engaging manner.
- Continue to discuss internet issues and share internet
experiences.
- Remind young people that material posted to some blogs can be
very hard to remove from public view.
- Gauge their level of understanding in the use of privacy and
security settings on the sites they use.
- Ensure they understand that posting to newsgroups makes their
email address public.
- Ensure both you and the young person understand laws relating
to copyright, privacy, software piracy, hacking and obscenity in
Australia.
Links to research
Campbell, M.A. 2005, 'Cyber bullying: An Old Problem in a New
Guise?', Australian Journal of Guidance and Counselling, vol. 15,
no. 1, pp. 68-76.
Livingstone, S. & Bober, M. 2005, UK Children Go Online: final
report of key project findings, Economic & Social Research
Council, London. http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/archive/0000039
Livingstone, S. 2001, Online freedom and safety for children,
Citizens Online & Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR),
London.
Wyn, J., Cuervo, H., Woodman, D., & Stokes, H. 2005, Young
people, wellbeing and communication technologies, VicHealth,
Melbourne.
Ybarra. M.L., Mitchell, K.J., Finkelhor, D., Wolak, J. 2007,
'Internet prevention messages - targeting the right online
behaviours', Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, vol.
161, no. 2, pp. 138-145.
Helpful websites
Staying safe online
Cyber smart kids