Online Safety for Parents

We often receive information and important updates from outside agencies and this space is a good opportunity to share those guidelines. We urge you to take the time to look at some of the suggestions we have been alerted to.

 A short parents guide to live streaming

Live streaming has become a popular feature of many apps and platforms. By understanding why it is popular and what potential risks your child may face, you can help your child have a more positive online experience. Read below for more advice on the problems it can cause...

Child safety and cyber-flashing

Cyber-flashing happens when a stranger sends an obscene picture, unsolicited, to your phone via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. It’s a form of sexual harassment and there have been prosecutions for it under existing laws...

Read the full factsheet here...

Non Emergency Contact details

For non emergency incidents you can text the police on 101, or if on Public Transport you can text the British Transport Police on 61016. More details below...

Child safety on YouTube

What’s the problem?

• You may have seen news reports about inappropriate children’s videos on YouTube
• Some of these videos, at first, appear to be for children as they include cartoon characters such as Peppa Pig or characters from Disney films such as Frozen. However, later on they become violent or disturbing. One, for example, shows Peppa Pig being tortured at the dentist
• The videos can appear in YouTube search results when children look for genuine children’s videos
• YouTube says that such videos will be age-restricted if they are reported by users, so they cannot be viewed by anyone under 18. YouTube has also been removing some of the worst videos that have hit the news headlines – but new ones appear all the time
• This factsheet explains how you can protect your child when they’re using YouTube apps or the website

To find out about safety options on YouTube, click here...

Child safety on TikTok

TikTok is a video-sharing app. Users can upload and share short videos of themselves lip-syncing to songs or acting out comedy sketches, and add special effects. They can gain followers (‘fans’) and browse other people’s videos.

You may have heard of the app by its previous name: Musical.ly. Everything that was on Musical.ly is now on TikTok. If your child previously had a Musical.ly account they will be able to access their content on TikTok.

The age recommendation is 13 and above. However, you don’t have to prove your age when creating an account, so younger children can still use it easily. It’s most popular with under-16s.

TikTok is free to download on Android and iOS devices (Apple phones and tablets). It carries ads and offers in-app purchases. It has about 150 million active users worldwide and is available in over 30 languages.

What are the concerns?

On the surface, nothing. TikTok has a reputation for being unusually free of trolling and danger.

But you may have seen news reports or heard concerns about some users harassing children for nude images and videos.

To read about TikTok click below