Cyber Toolkit: Communicate (NEW)

Teachers should focus on understanding how learners are using online platforms – do they consume, create or communicate?

This section focuses on the risks of using online platforms to communicate. 69% of children aged 3-15 used an online communications service for making voice/video calls or sending messages in 2022 (Ofcom).

The Cyber First Aid Box can be used by families to discuss and provide support to children and young people who may have encountered an online harm.

Cyber Toolkit home

Go to Consume or Create

cyber toolkit communicate

Although most of our time online is spent consuming content, such as viewing social media posts, watching videos or playing games, there is perhaps greater risk of harm from online communications. Whereas the user is mostly in control of content they consume, communicating with others involves others and therefore the additional risk of their behaviour impacting the user.

It is important that learners learn how to setup and maintain as much control of their devices and accounts to reduce the potential risk of harm. Teachers should make learnign specific to as many of the learners as possible, the statistics below should help shape some of your conversations with learners and help to identify the apps most common to children and young people.

 

Ofcom (2022) statistics reveal that:

  • 50% of 3-15-year-olds use WhatsApp (rising to 75% of 12-15s)
  • 30% of children aged 3-15 use Snapchat
  • 30% of children aged 3-15 use FaceTime
  • 22% of those aged 13+ who had received a recent unwelcome friend request, follow request, or message, received this via an instant messaging service
  • 9% of UK internet users aged 13+ who had experienced an online potential harm in the last four weeks, encountered their most recent potential harm on an instant messaging platform

The potential risks of online communication are most likely (Ofcom, 2022):

  • unwelcome friend/follow requests or messages
  • trolling
  • bullying, abusive behaviour or threats
  • unwanted sexual messages

Unwanted contact

cyber toolkit unwanted contact

Unwelcome friend/follow requests or messages (20%) and unwanted sexual messages (8%) account for 28% of the potential risks encountered by UK internet users aged 13+ (Ofcom, 2022). Understanding how the platform works can help children and young people reduce the likelihood of this potential risk by managing who can and cannot contact them.

go to Unwanted Contact page

Trolling, bullying and abusive behaviour
cyber toolkit trolling bullying abusive behaviour

Trolling (15%) and bullying, abusive behaviour or threats (8%) account for 23% of the potential risks encountered by UK internet users aged 13+ (Ofcom, 2022). Understanding how the platform works can help children and young people reduce the likelihood of this potential risk by managing whose messages and posts they see, and how to mute or block people who may be trolling, bullying or abusing them.

go to Trolling, Bullying and Abusive Behaviour page

Technology assisted harmful sexual behaviour (TAHSB)

Technology-assisted harmful sexual behaviour (TA-HSB) is when children and young people use the internet or other technology to engage in sexual activity that may be harmful to themselves and others. TA-HSB covers a range of behaviour including:

  • the developmentally inappropriate use of pornography
  • online sexual abuse
  • grooming
  • sexting

go to TAHSB page