Safeguarding Children Online:

A service-specific view on risks

and parental attitudes
October 2023
2 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Acknowledgments
This report was drafted by Telecommunications Management Group, Inc. (TMG), led
by Ana María Rodríguez Pulgarín, Policy and Regulatory Advisor, with the support
of Daniel Leza, Vice President, and Janet Hernandez, President. It was developed in
partnership with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in its role as an
expert agency on child online protection. We would like to particularly recognize
Fanny-Carlotta Rotino, Programme Coordinator, Child Online Protection, ITU for her
collaboration and key insights during the development of this report.

Julia Davidson, OBE, PhD, Professor of Criminology, Director of the Institute for
Connected Communities, University of East London, provided research guidance,
as well as additional comments and suggestions, throughout the project and we
thank her for her many contributions.

The surveys and interviews included in this report were conducted in partnership
with the global survey firm Geopoll.

This report was commissioned by Netflix.

Any errors remain the authors’ alone.

 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes 3

Foreword
Julia Davidson, OBE, PhD.
PROFESSOR OF CRIMINOLOGY, DIRECTOR OF THE INSTITUTE FOR CONNECTED
COMMUNITIES, UNIVERSITY OF EAST LONDON.

This generation of children and young people are the most connected, and
future generations will connect in ways that we can only imagine. Parents are
the guardians of childhood and have long played a central role in safeguarding
their children. But as each generation becomes increasingly digitally connected
and knowledgeable about technology, parents face the challenge of keeping
pace with the development of effective, enabling strategies that safeguard their
children while encouraging them to learn and benefit from being online.

This timely, extensive research was commissioned by acknowledge the need for help and support. There was
Netflix and authored by TMG to explore the experiences some evidence from children to suggest that they employ
of parents/caregivers and children as they experience a range of protective actions on different online services
the benefits and navigate around the challenges of including, for example, configuring private accounts and
children’s lives online across a range of services, including declining friend requests from unfamiliar individuals.
messaging applications, online games, streaming services,
social media, and user-generated content platforms. Ensuring that children remain happy, healthy, and safe
Nearly 5,000 parents across nine countries responded online to maximize opportunities is a responsibility that
to the survey. Although the context in which children must be shared as all key stakeholders play a role. This
access different services varies, the findings suggest important research can inform educational awareness
that parents broadly share the same hopes and fears programs and the efforts of practitioners working directly
regarding their children’s online behaviors regardless with children and young people. This research can also
of geographical location. The survey also found that inform industry practices in considering how best to
parents have an overwhelmingly positive view of the guide and support parents in safeguarding children
benefits that being online brings to children. They are, online and in considering safety-by-design practices on
however, concerned regarding risk and the potential for a service-specific basis. It is equally important for policy
harm with some services, particularly social media and makers to reflect upon these and other findings as they
user-generated content platforms, and are especially develop, introduce, implement, and monitor online safety
concerned about potential exposure to harmful content, legislation.
including pornography, violence, and the potential for
grooming. Close alignment was found between some of Overall, this report provides an important reminder of
the views expressed by parents and children regarding the enormous benefits children gain in interacting with
these key concerns. different online services while highlighting key risks and
potential harms to avoid. Most importantly, it points to
The surveyed parents largely felt responsible for the central role parents play in safeguarding their children
safeguarding their children online, recognizing that online. The report further reinforces the need for a “whole
effective communication with their children regarding systems” approach to child online safety with parents at
online use is key. Parents’ safeguarding strategies varied the center, supported and enabled by stakeholders from
by online service and included the use of parental key sectors including industry, education, and policy.
controls, education, monitoring, and communication.
They largely believe these strategies to be effective but
4 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Contents
Acknowledgments 2

Foreword 3

1. About the report 5

2. Methodological overview 6

3. Executive summary 7

4. Key global trends 8

5. A deep dive into five online services 24

6. Conclusion 39

7. Annex A: Country briefs 41

8. Annex B: Methodology 66

9. Annex C: Sample details 69

 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes 5

1 About the report

Children live in a connected world and spend more time online than ever
before. From 2008 to 2015, the proportion of 15-year-olds in OECD countries with
internet access at home increased from 75 percent to 95 percent.1 Then, during
the pandemic, screen time increased significantly for children globally.2

Extensive research has been conducted to examine the ● Quantitative survey component: This phase consisted
impact of connectivity on children’s well-being, media of in-depth interviews examining the knowledge gaps
use and attitudes, online harms in the digital world, regarding how children and parents experience different
and the technologies that parents use to protect their online offerings and related online safety strategies
children online. 3 used. For the quantitative survey, nearly 5,000 parents
were surveyed from nine countries: Brazil, Egypt, France,
However, an understanding of children’s connectivity at a India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the
service-specific level is lacking, given the vast ecosystem United States.
of applications, websites, and experiences that exist online
today. In particular, knowledge gaps remain regarding how ● Qualitative survey component: This consisted of
children and parents have experienced different online in-depth interviews conducted with 100 parents and 100
offerings, and what needs and approaches parents may children from five countries: Brazil, India, Nigeria, Saudi
have to safeguard their children online. Arabia, and the United States. Parents and their children
were asked about their perspectives and experiences
To prepare this study, TMG conducted both quantitative relating to the five different online services categorized
and qualitative surveys. below. This enabled the report to distinguish between
the unique features and experiences these services
offer children, and how those features and experiences
impact children differently.4

Figure 1. Five broad categories of online services reviewed in the study

Messaging Online Games (OG) Social Media Streaming Services User-generated

Applications (MA) (SM) (S/TV) content platforms
Examples:
(UGC)
Examples: ࢔ Apex Legends Examples: Examples:
࢔ Signal ࢔ Candy Crush ࢔ Facebook ࢔ Amazon Prime Examples:
࢔ Telegram ࢔ Fortnite ࢔ Instagram ࢔ Disney+ ࢔ Snapchat
࢔ WhatsApp ࢔ Minecraft ࢔ HBO Max ࢔ TikTok
࢔ Supermario ࢔ Netflix ࢔ YouTube
࢔ Solitaire

1 OECD, Educating 21st Century Children, (2019), https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/education/educating-21st-century-children_b7f33425-en.

2 EClinicalMedicine, Changes and correlates of screen time in adults and children during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis, (2022),
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35615691/.
3 A parent is defined as an adult who has a child and/or is the legal guardian of a child.
4 The examples included under the different online services are not an exhaustive list and have no relationship with the preferences of end-users. The online
games category includes both single player and multiplayer games. The survey covered online games in general and the interviews differentiated between
single player and multiplayer online games.
6 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

2 Methodological overview
TMG, in partnership with Geopoll, an international survey deployment
and data collection firm, conducted a quantitative online survey in nine
countries and in-depth qualitative interviews in five countries.5

Carried out from April to July 2023, the surveys and ● What role do parents play in ensuring that
interviews were designed to deepen understanding of children are protected online? How do parenting
the following issues/questions: styles and the approaches parents use to
protect their children differ by online service?
● What do parents think about their children’s use of
online services? How do parents perceive the benefits,
One point to generally note is that, as with any survey,
opportunities, concerns, and negative experiences
parents’ responses could be affected by social desirability
that these services offer their children?
bias.6 Further detail on the methodology, assumptions,
● What do children experience when they use different limitations, and safeguards used for this research is
online services? What are the benefits and risks provided in Annex B to this report.
different online services pose to children?

Table 1. Overview of quantitative and qualitative phases

Quantitative phase:
Online survey
TMG and Geopoll conducted an online
survey from April 16-May 8, 2023, with
parents with children ages 5-17 to
collect cross-sectional data. In total,
4,971 parents participated in the survey.

Qualitative phase:
In-depth online interviews
Based on the online survey results, TMG
and Geopoll conducted 100 in-depth
online interviews from July 6-28, 2023,
with children and parents, to deepen Quantitative and qualitative countries:
understanding of the quantitative data. Brazil, India, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia (KSA), United States (U.S.)
Quantitative only countries:
Egypt, France, Indonesia, Turkey

5  he nine countries for the quantitative survey are Brazil, Egypt, France, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United States and the five
T
countries for the qualitative survey are Brazil, India, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and the United States.
6 This type of response bias occurs in surveys when respondents answer questions in ways that are likely to please societal expectations or that they think are
acceptable.
 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes 7

3  Executive summary
In the study, parents showed different levels of risk perception and concern
based on the type of service, and correspondingly deployed different
parenting styles to manage their children’s use of each service type.7

These can be summarized as follows:

● Parents broadly have a positive view of their children’s use of technology, particularly
as a means of achieving success and learning.

● Alongside the benefits, parents have concerns about children’s online engagement,
particularly around content (e.g., extreme violence, pornography, misinformation, and
age-inappropriateness), negative influences online, and communications with strangers.
Some of these concerns also vary based on the age of the children.

● Not all risks are perceived equally. Parents are more comfortable with their children
using streaming services, online games, and messaging applications than with social
media and user-generated content platforms.

● Differing comfort levels may relate to specific features unique to particular services.
Parents consistently highlighted concerns with user-generated uploads and user-to-user
communication. Some parents are also more comfortable with services that involve
payment than with free ones.

● Differentiated concerns lead parents to adopt different strategies to manage their

children online, based on the service. Parents found their strategies to be largely
effective and generally believe they have primary responsibility for managing their
children’s online experiences. At the same time, parents did report that there are some
areas they might need help with, based on the service.

● Like parents, children have concerns in particular about strangers and undesirable
content. They tailor their behavior online depending on the online service.

7  parenting style is defined as the behavior the parent has toward the child’s online safety, including the actions the parent undertakes to
A
protect their child online.
8 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

4 Key global trends

4.1 Parents view online services as a means for their children
to achieve success and learning
The benefits that technology offers children are widely In the survey, parents widely acknowledged the benefits
recognized. According to a UNICEF report,8 children of internet access for their children with 99.7 percent of
engaging in online activities are more interested in the interviewed parents feeling excited about at least one
educational, informative, and social experiences online aspect of their children’s online use. Nearly half expressed
that potentially improve their well-being and build their excitement around the potential for their children to
technical and critical capacities, allowing them to benefit learn online. Nearly 85 percent also agreed or strongly
from learning new digital skills. TMG’s report generally agreed that their child’s use of devices and technology
confirms UNICEF’s findings. was important for their success and were proud that their
child was technologically savvy. These perceived benefits
increased slightly as their children got older.

Figure 3. Parent’s general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Parents generally have a positive view of their children’s use of technology,

particularly as a means of achieving success and learning.

“Using electronic devices “I take pride in how

and technology is knowledgeable/
important for my child to savvy my child is
succeed in today’s world.” about technology.”

84%
Agree
85% Agree

80% 88% 82% 89%

AGE DIFFERENCE
These two statements were true for all ages,
5-8 13-17 but parents reported more benefits as their 5-8 13-17
YRS YRS children got older. YRS YRS

8 UNICEF and LSE, Growing up in a connected world, (2019), https://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/GKO%20Summary%20Report.pdf.

 Key global trends 9

The study also found that the types of positive the entertainment element provided for their children
experiences children have differ depending on the with online games, and viewed messaging applications
service. Parents perceived that their children used user- and social media to be where children mostly connect
generated content platforms and streaming services and socialize with others.
more commonly than other services to improve their
language skills, gain exposure to other cultures, and
learn about interesting topics. Parents focused more on

Figure 4. Technology and its benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Top two services where parents reported

children having the positive experience

Learn digital skills 63% UGC OG

Learn or improve
a language
56% S/TV UGC

Learn about other

countries and cultures
53% S/TV UGC

Learn about topics

of interest
52% UGC S/TV

Have fun 46% OG S/TV

Socialize and
connect with people
31% MA SM

Keep them occupied 29%

while parents are busy
Nothing 1%

AGE DIFFERENCE
The top three benefits that parents perceive from their children’s use of
technology increased as the children got older.

61% 65%
54% 58% 57%
49%

5-8 13-17 5-8 13-17 5-8 13-17

YRS YRS YRS YRS YRS YRS

Learn digitalskills Learnor improve Learn about countries

a language and cultures
10 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

On the benefits of user-generated content On the benefits of online games, messaging

platforms and streaming services applications and social media

Learning to count, both in That is for their

Portuguese and in English, she entertainment. They use it for
learned it all by watching videos only using their free time either
on YouTube.” in single or multiplayer [online
– Parent of a 6-year-old girl, Brazil. games].”
– Parent of a 12-year-old boy, India.

He watches foreign movies

to develop the language; he It’s necessary to use social
listens to the movies carefully media at school; he
even without subtitling. He also communicates with his friends
gathers the family to watch a for homework and duties. He
movie together [on streaming].” contacts friends and family via
– Parent of a 14-year-old boy, KSA. social media, it’s a must.”
– Parent of a 16-year-old boy, KSA.

I find value in certain do-it-

yourself (DIY) videos, and it’s It [messaging applications]
beneficial for her as well, helps in his spellings, helps in his
especially when it comes to her communicating with friends who
interests in crafts, artwork, and are far from him and he cannot
drawing. She often watches [UGC] see them presently, at least with
videos that demonstrate various the video calls too, he can be
drawing techniques and tries to able to see them”
replicate them, as drawing is one – Parent of a 10-year-old boy, Nigeria.
of her keen interests.”
– Parent of an 8-year-old girl, U.S.
 Key global trends 11

4.2 Parents are mostly concerned about extreme content, misinformation,

exposure to negative influences online, and age-inappropriate content
In addition to recognizing the numerous benefits of Some of the parents’ concerns varied depending on
children’s online experiences, nearly all parents also the age of their children and the type of service. For
expressed concerns. Parents were most commonly example, parents became more concerned with their
concerned with their children being exposed to children being exposed to negative influences online
extreme violence or pornography (54.5 percent), as the children got older. While 32 percent of parents
misinformation/manipulative content (42.9 percent), with children ages 5 to 8 reported having this concern,
exposure to a negative influence online (36.5 percent), this percentage increased to 41 percent for parents with
and age-inappropriate content (36.5 percent).9 Other children ages 13 to 17. In contrast, concerns with their
common concerns expressed during the interviews children being exposed to age-inappropriate content
included the possibility of their children communicating decreased as the children got older. Whereas 39 percent
and sharing personal information with strangers, of parents with children ages 5 to 8 reported being worried
learning inappropriate language, or being cyberbullied. about age-inappropriate content exposure, the percentage
fell to 32 percent for parents with children ages 13 to 17.

Figure 5. Parents’ top four concerns about their child’s online activities (% of parents)

Exposure to extreme
violence/pornography 55%

Misinformation 43%

Exposure to a negative
influence online 37%

Age-inappropriate
content
37%

41% AGE DIFFERENCE 39%

32% 32%
The number of parents that
5-8 13-17 reported having concerns with 5-8 13-17
YRS YRS their children being exposed YRS YRS
Exposure to a negative to a negative influence online Age-inappropriate
influence online and age-inappropriate content content
varied depending on the age
Increased with age of the child Decreased with age

9 The survey referred to pornographic content in general; it did not differentiate between adult pornography and child sexual abuse material (CSAM) or if the
pornographic content was user-generated or not. The same applied for the in-depth interviews.
12 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

How age-inappropriate content is

described differs by online service

Age-inappropriate content is a broad term that means different things for different parents, depending
on culture, personal preference and crucially depending on the online service. During interviews, parents’
reported that the type of age-inappropriate content to which their children were exposed varied depending
on whether they were talking about UGC, social media, or streaming services.

Age-inappropriate content on Age-inappropriate content on

UGC and social media streaming services

On UGC and social media, parents referenced On streaming services, parents related more
more extreme content related to explicit sexual commonly to TV shows and films that were
content, self-harm content, and excessive meant for more mature audiences that involved
violence, including animal torture. nudity, violence, alcohol, or smoking.

Extreme violence, maybe from It is about the nudity scene in the

TikTok. Pornography too, from TikTok movie and the OTT platforms I
and maybe WhatsApp. A movie rated mentioned where not pornography
higher than his age, maybe from level but to some extent it is related
television or Netflix, content depicting content where we need to take care.”
or encouraging self-harm maybe from – Parent of a 17-year-old girl, India.
TikTok and YouTube.”
– Parent of a 14-year-old boy, Brazil.
 Key global trends 13

4.3 Not all risks are perceived equally; parents are more comfortable
with streaming, online games, and messaging applications
Parental concerns varied by service. In response to the survey, about 8 out of every 10 parents stated
that they were very comfortable or comfortable with their children using streaming services or online
games. This number dropped to 7 out of 10 parents for messaging applications and fell even further
for social media and user-generated content platforms, with only 6 out of 10 parents stating that they
were comfortable with their children using these services.10

Figure 6. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

8% 8% 12%
18% 20% Very comfortable
14% 16%
19% or comfortable
22% 23% Neutral
Very concerned
or concerned

78% 76%
69%
60% 57% AGE DIFFERENCE
In general, across all the online services,
comfort levels increase slightly as children
get older (up to 4 percentage points).

STREAMING ONLINE MESSAGING SOCIAL USER-GENERATED

SERVICES GAMES APPLICATIONS MEDIA CONTENT PLATFORMS

On comfort with streaming services, online games, and messaging applications

Paid TV shows and movie streaming service. I think after a while it was, especially with
I am very comfortable because whatever he is the games after seeing that she was playing
watching like cartoons or otherwise, he is them for a while and nothing bad was happening.
watching in front of us, therefore I feel he is There was no random communications with
sitting at the safe place and good place and people we didn’t know or anything like, okay, she
under 12 age content he is watching and learning knows her way around this. She knows how to
something new as well as such services are turn down in case she was invited to anything. So
giving him entertainment at the same time.” it’s okay. It’s just, I guess building trust.”
– Parent of a 12-year-old boy, India. – Parent of a 11-year-old girl, U.S.

More comfortable is with WhatsApp, even though I don’t like it... It’s just people that he knows,
and I was very resistant to it at first...”
– Parent of a 10-year-old boy, Brazil.

10 In general, across all the services, comfort levels increased slightly as children got older (up to 4 percentage points). For UGC, the increase
was more significant: very comfortable or comfortable: Age 5-8: 53.2% / Age 13-17: 63.0%.
14 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

On comfort with social media and user-generated content platforms

[T]he one that I am not comfortable

[S]ome social media
with is YouTube. You know with YouTube
platforms expose your kid
you have so many videos that children are
to inappropriate content
not supposed to watch so I don’t really
that is not suitable for us.”
allow her to do that. I am always there,
once I am watching, if she sees something – Parent of a 14-year-old boy, KSA.

interesting she says ‘Mummy, this one is

interesting, can we watch this?’ So I will
now check the content and I will be like,
okay we can watch it. If it is something
that she can’t watch, I will tell her ‘No, you
are just a child, you can’t watch this.’”
– Parent of a 12-year-old girl, Nigeria.
 Key global trends 15

4.4 Parents are most concerned with user-generated uploads and user-to-user

communication, and most comfortable with paid services

Specific features of the different services can shape

parents’ perceptions about risks. In the qualitative study,
two features consistently created particular concern On concerns with user-to-
for parents and sometimes materialized in negative user communication
experiences for children: user-uploaded content and
user-to-user communications. Services that involved
these features were perceived as riskier by parents I just told her as a parent what
than other services without these features. For example, every reasonable parent should do. I am
parents often stated that their children have watched
like; social media is not real life. You
content that included extreme violence and self-harm
can even see an old man of 70 years
in user-generated content platforms. They also reported
instances where their children were bullied, exposed to
claiming to be a teenager just to lure
inappropriate language, or asked to share their personal you so you don’t talk to strangers. Do
data in services where they could communicate with not meet strangers; do not meet
other users, including in online multiplayer games and strangers you meet on social media.”
social media. – Parent of a 16-year-old girl, Nigeria.

[T]he negative aspect is that they

might encounter interactions from
On concerns with user-generated uploads people who are not necessarily their
friends [on social media]. If their
accounts are not locked off, these
On YouTube you have access to violent individuals can make derogatory and
stuff and even pornography. Looks like it’s not hurtful comments, which can severely
censored, got it? It’s all open, and lately it’s impact the self-esteem of younger kids.”
been getting more open. It’s a harm, they start – Parent of a 15-year-old girl, U.S.
to get in touch with these things too early.”
– Parent of an 8-year-old boy, Brazil.
I believe that the social media
aspect of gaming carries similar
On YouTube also Google has controlled concerns, as players can interact, chat,
the language but still people upload and potentially get to know strangers.
anything so control should be there from When participating in multiplayer
government’s end where they should remove games alongside unknown individuals,
videos having such language.” there’s always a risk of encountering
– Parent of a 17-year-old girl, India. someone with malicious intentions.
Additionally, some games, particularly
combat-oriented ones, may expose
There is no censorship, applications
children to violence and desensitize
[on UGC] are open to all ages and there
them to such content.”
are no specific ages, challenges that are
not censored” – Parent of a 14-year-old girl, U.S.

– Parent of a 10-year-old boy, KSA.

16 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Services also varied in terms of whether they provided paid or free offerings, and that was a factor
in parents’ concerns.11 Testimonials suggest that where parents must pay to use a service, they felt
a greater sense of control over what content their children could access. This may be related to
parents reporting that they could more effectively block inappropriate content and monitor their
children’s online activities on paid services. Lastly, a parent stated that they felt paid services were
more responsible for the content they provided and could be held accountable more easily for any
content that could be harmful.

On paid services versus free services

So, because it’s free for anyone Sometimes, the paid thing is
to create a channel and create some safer when it comes to the kids
sort of activity to post there for free, because they have special channels
there’s little in the line of filtering.” for the kids, passwords. It is safer. I
can control some of the things that
– Parent of a 5-year-old girl, Brazil.
could harm my kids.”

There is huge difference – Parent of a 6-year-old girl, KSA.

because free services are for limited

time and you have much less control In my opinion, when you’re
over it, however, paid services paying for a service, there’s a sense
involves company policies and you of better monitoring and control over
can’t share any video and there is the content that is posted there. For
control over it, however, when it instance, platforms like Disney, which
comes to free services the control on are paid services, tend to have
all these are less because they post stricter content guidelines and
many videos.” moderation. On the other hand, with
free services, I feel like the
– Parent of a 17-year-old girl, India.
monitoring might not be as thorough
or strict, leading to potentially riskier
content being available.”
– Parent of a 7-year-old boy, U.S.

11 During qualitative interviews parents were asked about the relationship with comfort levels and paid services.
 Key global trends 17

4.5 Parents use different strategies to manage their children’s online

activities, depending on the service
Most surveyed parents recognize that they have the primary responsibility for guiding their children’s
online experience. In the survey, 88 percent of parents stated that they are primarily responsible for
managing their children’s online experience. Accordingly, parents take proactive steps to protect
their children online. The survey identified eight different strategies that parents use to protect their
children, ranging from monitoring to communication and guidance. On average, parents reported that
their top strategies were communications and setting rules for their children’s online use.

The in-depth interviews also highlighted that parents’ strategies vary by service. Strategies may vary
from constant monitoring to blocking certain content or watching the content together with the child.

For example, for user-generated platforms, social media and messaging applications, parents were
more likely to use different kinds of monitoring approaches to protect their children while using the
service. For online games, parents often reported introducing rules and parental controls to manage
their children’s usage. In contrast, for streaming services, parents reported watching content together
with their children and using parental controls, ratings, and advisories.

When it comes to the various platforms or online

services he’s using, such as TV shows, games, or videos,
I do tend to adjust my parenting style accordingly. Different
platforms may require different levels of monitoring and
guidance, so I try to adapt my approach based on the specific
service he’s engaging with. It’s important to address each
platform’s unique content and potential impact on him to
ensure a balanced and safe digital experience.”
– Parent of a 7-year-old boy, U.S.
18 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Table 2. Examples of parenting strategy per online service

ONLINE PARENTING STYLE

SERVICE OR STRATEGIES QUOTES

Check the phone “On messaging applications, they only have access to people
More supervision

contact lists and that are already in my contacts list, so I’m always watching if
Messaging messages they are sending messages to their aunties, grandmother…”
applications – Parent of a 7-year-old boy, Brazil.

Link profiles to the “We have each other’s accounts. So, I know what she is
parents’ accounts uploading. And I can open her phone at any time”
Social media and supervise posts – Parent of an 11-year-old girl, KSA.

Monitor viewing “And I can go to YouTube and look at the history.

history/linking Make certain she is not looking at weird stuff.”
accounts. Use – Parent of a 7-year-old girl, U.S.
User-generated parental controls
“If she is using YouTube Kids then we can rest
content such as “kids”
assured because the content will be kids related
platforms profiles only and not inappropriate content.”
– Parent of a 7-year-old girl, India.

Restrict time “On multiplayer games, as he can chat with people from
and block around the world, we block his microphone so he has as
communications little contact as possible with people and just play.”
with strangers – Parent of an 8-year-old boy, India.

“I have to stop him and tell him, it’s not that big of a deal if
Online games he’s done with his homework, but when he becomes really
engaged in the game and I have to remind him that it’s almost
time for bed. Have you finished your homework? He isn’t
always finished. As a result, he has stay later to complete it.”
– Parent of a 12-year-old boy, U.S.

Watch together with “[B]ut we all should watch together whether it’s in my
the children. Use house, her relatives’ houses or at her uncle’s house, all
parental controls should watch the movie together as it’s more exciting.”
such as “kids” – Parent of a 14-year-old girl, KSA.
Less supervision

profiles
Streaming “It is easier to check what she is watching. She has a kids
services account, so everything she watches is suitable for her age.
When we watch something together it is also the same thing.”
– Parent of a 9-year-old girl, Brazil.
 Key global trends 19

Parents adapt their strategies depending

on the age of their child, recognizing that Figure 7. Use of parental controls and communication
as children get older, online challenges strategy by online service by age (% of parents)
and strategies evolve. Parents of children
ages 5 to 8 reported using parental controls
“I constantly speak
more than parents of children 13 and older.
Whereas parents with children older than with my child about
13 years relied more on speaking with their “I use parental her/his experience
children about what they should or should
control tools” with the service”
not be doing online.
Decreased with age Increased with age

AGES AGES
5-8 9-12 13+ 5-8 9-12 13+

39
When she was younger, 32
47

I used to have some 30

MESSAGING 43
APPLICATIONS
restrictions. When she 40

overstepped, I took her 43

liberty away, and I gave it 37
31
back sometime later. ONLINE
41

Eventually, she started to be 27 GAMES

37
responsible for it. I mean,
she already has a mind of 46
44
42
her own, so I give her a lot 41
STREAMING
of freedom regarding this.” 34
SERVICES
38
– Parent of a 17-year-old girl, Brazil.
55
44 43
51

36 SOCIAL
MEDIA
48

49
46 48
42
USER-GENERATED
33 CONTENT
PLATFORMS
42
20 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

While 92 percent of parents consider that their approaches to protecting their children online were
effective,12 parents were also interested in learning about additional tools and strategies to further
protect their children and sought support from their children’s schools and communities.

On additional tools and help to protect children online

Yes, mainly kids implement Only one person cannot take

what they learn in school. care of a child. At least they need
Therefore, if they are taught in more orientation both in school, in
schools how online fraud can churches, and any social gathering.”
happen and the content should be
– Parent of a 10-year-old boy, Nigeria.
avoided, an awareness campaign
should be there.”
– Parent of an 11-year-old girl, India. I believe there’s room for
improvement in parental controls
and monitoring, making them
I want to be able to navigate easier to use and more effective.
her device without her knowledge. For instance, it would be beneficial
If there is such a thing, I could pay to have a more straightforward way
for that. I want to know what she is to monitor my child’s phone,
watching and listening to.” especially when she’s at a
sleepover. Being able to track her
– Parent of a 6-year-old girl, KSA.
activities and her friends’ activities
would be helpful. Overall, I think
we can significantly enhance
technology related to parental
controls and protecting minors.”
– Parent of a 14-year-old girl, U.S.

12 The high percentage here could be as a result of answering the survey questions in a way that gives the impression that parents are more
assertive when protecting their children online than they really are. Although the report findings regarding the effectiveness of parents’
strategies align with what other studies have found regarding parental mediation and reduction of online risks, effectiveness is a broad
term and quantifying it through a single question could be reductionist. Therefore, future research could explore the question around
the effectiveness of parental approaches to protect their children online in more detail and offer further evidence on how and what
effectiveness means for parents.
 Key global trends 21

4.6 Like parents, children have concerns about strangers and

undesirable content and they tailor their online safety approach
depending on the online service

Children interviewed generally had a positive view of their online experiences. In particular they enjoyed
being able to chat with their friends, play games, and watch videos.

Children sharing their favorite things online

Play with my Probably chatting

friends, chat with I love to play Sony with my friends
them and watch PlayStation like and playing online Watching cartoons
YouTube.” FIFA.” games.” and playing games”
– 10-year-old – 12-year-old – 12-year-old – 7-year-old
girl, Brazil. boy, KSA. boy, U.S. boy, Nigeria.

At the same time, a significant number of children displayed an awareness of potential risks to their
engagement online and noted efforts that they take to avoid them. Children stated that they exercise
caution in particular when engaging with strangers online and avoid sharing personal information,
such as addresses, names, and passwords. Some also avoided or urged their friends against watching
undesirable content, particularly when it was either frightening or violent.

Children’s concerns closely aligned with some of the top concerns reported by parents, including
children communicating with strangers and exposure to age-inappropriate content online.13

On communicating with strangers and sharing personal information online

[A]voiding talking to the person on the game, But I do advise my friends that communicating
because you cannot know if it is an old person. The with strangers is weird and harmful.”
technologies evolve and nowadays the old people can
– 17-year-old girl, India.
fake, can pretend they’re teenagers.”
– 13-year-old girl, Brazil.
Do not give out your real name and do not share
your password.”
[T]hey should look out for people they accept to
– 10-year-old boy, U.S.
chat with. Yes, before you even chat with someone you
have to accept his request and in case you are not
comfortable with someone, you can just block him.” Not to chat with strangers, not to share your
private information or pictures with any stranger.”
– 17-year-old girl, Nigeria.
– 15-year-old girl, KSA.

13 While it is also possible that these concerns genuinely reflect the fears and risks perceptions that children have, alignment between
children’s responses and parental concerns could be attributed to parents being present during the interviews, which may have influenced
the children to share views they believed their parents would endorse.
22 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Addressing undesirable content

Don’t watch I don’t watch They shouldn’t Like, not

those things, they the video or play the download any videos looking up
are bad. Be careful games that are or any films. Like inappropriate things
with videos you inappropriate.” sexy scenes or like that [on UGC].”
watch.” – 7-year-old boy, KSA. something like that.” – 14-year-old girl, U.S.
– 11-year-old boy, – 8-year-old girl,
Brazil. Nigeria.

There was some evidence during the interviews that children, like parents, vary their actions to protect
themselves, based on the specific online service they use.

Highlighting social media and user-generated content platforms, such as TikTok and Snapchat, children
mentioned employing tactics, including configuring private accounts and declining friend requests
from unfamiliar individuals as safeguard mechanisms. With online gaming environments, some children
shared that they would mute or avoid using chat functions to prevent getting in touch with strangers
or being exposed to inappropriate language.

On safety with social media and On safety with

user-generated content platforms online games

And if you are an under-age person, to have a closed Bullying via online games with
profile on social media would help a lot to have more control multiplayers. When I discover bullying or
over your account and to check who’s watching your posts.” people making fun of others I turn the
mute option.”
– 17-year-old girl, Brazil.
– 14-year-old boy, KSA.

I would advise them to keep your account private and

don’t accept requests from random people.” Avoid the comments section on
multiplayer games, people can insult
– 17-year-old girl, India.
and be rude.”
– 12-year-old boy, U.S.
To make your account that has your personal photos
private. I don’t post my videos on TikTok to be public if they are
private.” I don’t talk in the chat of the game
that I play. Because there’s like strangers
– 16-year-old girl, KSA.
there that I don’t know.”
– 12-year-old boy, U.S.
I’m not entirely sure, but it’s essential to exercise caution
while posting, sharing, searching, and accepting requests
online. It’s about being mindful of your actions and choices.”
– 15-year-old boy, U.S.
 Key global trends 23

In the context of user-generated content platforms, such as YouTube, some children stated that they
bypassed undesirable content by changing or fast-forwarding through the video. Children did not
highlight messaging applications and streaming services as much during this discussion.

On safety with user-generated content platforms

If I find an inappropriate
scene or bad content or even a Yeah, when I’m watching something
pornography, I’ll skip it at once.” on my For You Page and it starts becoming
– 13-year-old boy, KSA.
sadder or something I don’t like, I take
action. I simply search for the content I
want to see and watch that. By doing this,
They should report to their parents my For You Page starts showing more of the
or they can just delete that video.” content I prefer.”
– 12-year-old girl, Nigeria. – 14-year-old girl, U.S.

These adaptive strategies showcase the proactive efforts undertaken by both parents and children to
ensure a safer online experience.

Despite general alignment between parents and children, there were instances where children’s reports
diverged from those of their parents. In certain cases, children reported using online services that
their parents were not aware of, such as Discord, and they shared negative experiences that had gone
unnoticed by their parents, for example incidents in the metaverse and cyberbullying in social media.
These differences could imply that parents may not always have a comprehensive understanding of
their children’s online interactions.
24 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

5  deep dive into five

A
online services

5.1 Messaging applications

Messaging applications allow children to socialize and receive. Some parents also highlighted that
and connect with others. At the same time, parents it is harder for strangers to contact the children
perceive certain risks associated with messaging in messaging applications than in other online
services due to the possibility of sharing content services as whomever wants to communicate
and communicating with strangers. Parents’ risk with the children needs their telephone number.
perceptions do not often materialize in actual bad This lowers the probability that their children will
experiences for their children, with less than 23 be contacted by strangers. 91 percent of parents
percent of parents reporting their children having reported that their strategies to protect their children
had actual negative experiences with a messaging on messaging applications were effective.
service. Parents reported feeling in control because
they have access to their children’s contact list and
can check the messages that their children send
 A deep dive into five online services 25

Figure 8. Protecting children using messaging applications, parents’ perspectives

MESSAGING APPLICATIONS

Top positive experiences Top negative experiences

(% of parents) (% of parents)

Socialize Negative
49% & connect influence online 23%

Addictive
35% Have fun
behavior 23%

Misinformation/
Learn digital
28% skills
manipulative 22%
content

Positive Negative
83%
83% experiences experiences 60%

During the interviews, parents also

reported some incidents of children
communicating with strangers.

I believe that chatting can have valuable

benefits. It offers a more direct and personal Her mother caught some chat groups on
connection, especially for young individuals. her phone, game related chat groups, and she
(...) Through chatting, they feel connected and was talking to strangers. People from other
find friends, which is essential as sometimes states with cartoon pictures on their profile
you might feel alone in certain activities.” pictures, we don’t know who that might be.”
– Parent of a 10-year-old boy, U.S. – Parent of a 13-year-old girl, Brazil.

Risks and
related features

Fraud and scams Sharing content

Some parents worry that their children Sharing pictures with strangers has the potential
could become victims of fraud and scams to put children in vulnerable places
RE & SKS

via messages or calls

UR ED
RI

ES
AT AT
FE L

Communicating with strangers Communication tools

Parents see risks associated with children sharing Chatting and calling could be a source of negative
personal information or being groomed experiences for children
26 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Top parental strategies to protect their children online

(% of parents)

48%Guide or educate
44%Speak about the
37%
Monitor child without
experience them noticing

In the interviews, parents shared additional strategies they used

to protect their children when using messaging applications.

On messaging applications they I keep on checking her

only have access to people that are phone and her chat.”
already in my contacts list, so I’m always – Parent of a 11-year-old girl, India.
watching if they are sending messages to
their aunties, grandmother.”
– Parent of a 7-year-old boy, Brazil. Number 1 is that she uses my
phone, my number for WhatsApp and
I do see what they discuss.”
I can open the conversations every
– Parent of a 8-year-old girl, Nigeria.
once in a while to read them”
– Parent of a 10-year-old boy, KSA.

Parents reported their strategies were highly effective, but they stated they still
need some help to protect their children when using messaging applications.

of parents said their

We want to avoid that on WhatsApp if
strategies were very

91% effective or effective

there is any random message or someone who
in protecting their is unknown or writing ‘hello, I want to be friend’
children on messaging or something like that, if you know that person
applications then it is fine, otherwise block.”
– Parent of a 17-year-old girl, India.
 A deep dive into five online services 27

5.2 Online games

During the interviews, children reported that playing or have user-to-user communication capabilities. In
online games was fun and among their favorite response to risks and negative experiences, parents
online activities. In the survey, parents reported guide, communicate, and set rules for their children’s
feeling more comfortable with online games than use of online games. During interviews, parents also
with many other services online. Despite this, stated that they blocked the option to play with
interviewed parents reported that their main concern strangers and prevented their children from using
with online games was their children’s interaction headsets that allow them to speak with others. 89
with strangers, exposure to explicit language, or percent of parents reported that their strategies
cyberbullying. These risks were not among the top effectively protected their children while playing
negative experiences for children highlighted in the games online. However, parents also stated that
quantitative survey, with only 14 percent of parents they would like additional help. In particular, they
reporting that their child had communicated with liked the idea of children only being able to play
strangers in online games. Similarly, only 13 percent with other children of a similar age and wanted
of parents reported that their child was cyberbullied there to be more ways to ensure that their children
while using the service. The difference in quantitative would not be able to communicate with strangers.
and qualitative results may be due to the wide variety
of online games where not all games are multiplayer
28 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure 9. Protecting children using online games, parents’ perspectives

ONLINE GAMES

Top positive experiences Top negative experiences

(% of parents) (% of parents)

Addictive
58% Have fun
behavior 28%

Misinformation
Learn digital
33% skills
/manipulative 18%
content
Age-
Learn topics
24% of interest
inappropriate 18%
content

Positive Negative
86% experiences experiences 59%

During the interviews, parents also

reported negative experiences as a result
of communicating with others.

Some of the benefits are, one, he is

entertaining himself, secondly he gains “It depends on the game, some
more knowledge because there are some games are like a communication channel.
words those people will use that he can I think that’s the risk. (…) She may even give
apply to his own life too.” her WhatsApp number.”
Parent of a 10-year-old boy, Nigeria. – Parent of a 7-year-old girl, Brazil.

Risks and
related features

Age-inappropriate content Violent content

Children are exposed to some violent content Some video games include
related to guns and fighting in some games violent graphic content
RE & SKS
UR ED
RI

ES
AT AT
FE L

Communicating with strangers Communication tools

Parents see risks associated with children sharing personal Tools where children can encounter negative
information, being cyberbullied, or learning bad language experiences while talking with strangers
 A deep dive into five online services 29

Top parental strategies to protect their children online

(% of parents)

43%
Guide or educate
40%
Speak about the experience
40%
Set rules for its use

In the interviews, parents shared additional strategies they

used to protect their children when using online games.

I always warn my son He takes time period I tend to supervise

to play with close friends and and we allow him to play the games more because
with cousins because they are within that time period only.” I’m the one who manages
a source of trust, so I do not – Parent of a 12-year-old the downloads on the iPad
worry about my son from any boy, India. since the account is under
of these online services.” my name.”
– Parent of a 12-year-old – Parent of a 8-year-old
boy, KSA. girl, U.S.

Parents reported their strategies were highly effective, but they stated they
still need some help to protect their children when using online games.

of parents said their Some of the games need supervision, they

89% strategies were very effective should tell us about the games that harm their
or effective in protecting their mentality, the games that are full of violence.
They should notify us about that.”
children in online games
– Parent of a 16-year-old girl, KSA.

I think not having the age control is a

contributing factor. I think the platforms should have
this age control, I mean... There’s always a way to cheat,
Authentication should be done like Aadhaar card but I believe it would make the online environment
or sharing such stuff then only giving permission to safer. Not only the expertise filters that the game has,
create the account, there should be stamp like if my child but age filters, because there are kids, like my son, that
is playing game then it should be written aside that this are really good at the game, but I don’t think they
person is authentic and he is safe to play.” should be allowed to play with grown ups.”
– Parent of a 12-year-old boy, India. – Parent of a 10-year-old boy, Brazil.
30 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

5.3 Social media

Social media allows children to connect with and experiences for children on social media as only 1 in
view content and posts added by other users. These 5 had one of these experiences while using a social
types of services often become a concern for parents media service. Parents reported using strategies to
with older children. Although younger children may monitor their children’s social media usage more
occasionally use social media, most underage social closely, such as linking their profiles to those of
media users are older than 10 years old. During their children. Other parents reported constantly
interviews, parents expressed numerous concerns checking their children’s posts and tags. 94 percent
about social media including that their children of parents reported that their strategies effectively
experience cyberbullying, learn bad habits from protect their children on social media. Yet they also
social media influencers, and receive inappropriate stated that they would like to have additional tools
requests to share private content. Among these to monitor what their children view on social media.
concerns, only misinformation or manipulative
content was an actual top negative experience for
children on social media (30 percent). Cyberbullying
and communicating with strangers were not common
 A deep dive into five online services 31

Figure 10. Protecting children using social media, parents’ perspectives

SOCIAL MEDIA

Top positive experiences Top negative experiences

(% of parents) (% of parents)
Age-
Socialize inappropriate
39% & connect 40%
content

Addictive
39% Have fun
behavior 34%

Misinformation/
Learn topics
34% of interest
manipulative 30%
content

Positive Negative
82% experiences experiences 78%

During the interviews, parents also

The major reason for social media right reported negative experiences as a result
of communicating with others.
now is that everybody is on social media
especially teenagers. Even some children are
now on social media so it is something that is
trending so any teenager who is in secondary She accepted a request of someone
school and is not on social media for me is on Instagram and some obscene content
somehow behind.” was shared.”
– Parent of a 16-year-old girl, Nigeria. – Parent of a 11-year-old girl, India.

Risks and
related features

Manipulative content User-generated content

Potential to learn and get information Parents fear their children upload posts
that parents do not approve or that is and interact with other user’s reels,
RE & SKS

age-inappropriate vlogs, and lives

UR ED
RI

ES
AT AT
FE L

Cyberbullying Communicating with others

Some parents are worried about their children Chat and comments could be a source of
receiving messages and being bullied for their negative experiences for chidren
content in the service
32 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Top parental strategies to protect their children online

(% of parents)

52%
Guide or educate
52%Speak about the
43%
Monitor child without
experience them noticing

During the interviews, parents shared additional strategies they

use to protect their children when using social media.

So that boy targeted 2-3 female I only check her posts and
students of the school and by making sometimes what her friends post and
2-3 fake accounts he started to trouble have her tagged on it.”
those girls, so we started to ignore –Parent of a 16-year-old girl, Brazil.
initially and then we blocked that boy.”
– Parent of a 17-year-old girl, India.
We have each other’s accounts.
So, I know what she is uploading. And I
can open her phone at any time.”
– Parent of a 11-year-old girl, KSA.

Parents reported that their strategies were highly effective, but that they
still need some help to protect their children when using social media.

of parents said their They should do something about their

strategies were security. To protect her from bad friends.”

94%
very effective or – Parent of a 17-year-old girl, Nigeria.
effective in protecting
their children on
social media On Instagram and Facebook it should be
there (parental controls) or there should be
tools where you can check what children are
watching, so the link should be there with the
parents.”
– Parent of a 17-year-old girl, India.
 A deep dive into five online services 33

5.4 Streaming Services

Parents often perceive streaming services as by parent, in the case of streaming services, parents
“safe spaces.” This may be due to the curated commonly defined age-inappropriate content as
aspect of streaming content that are often paid content that included violence, nudity, or that
services that lack user-generated and user-to-user clashed with their cultural values. Besides watching
communications features. Parents also often watch the content together with the children, several
streaming content together with their children and parents also reported during the interviews that
use parental controls, making them feel more in they set up a child’s profile on streaming services
control. However, in the interviews with parents, to make sure that their children were not viewing
concerns were expressed about their children age-inappropriate programming. 94 percent of
viewing age-inappropriate content. Inappropriate parents stated that their strategies to protect their
content for the age of the child was the top negative children when using streaming services were very
experience for children in streaming services, with 34 effective. Yet, parents also reported needing some
percent of parents reporting their children watched help to ensure that children do not watch movies
age-inappropriate content on the service. Although and shows not meant for their age.
what parents consider to be age-inappropriate varies
34 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure 11. Protecting children using streaming services, parents’ perspectives

STREAMING SERVICES

Top positive experiences Top negative experiences

(% of parents) (% of parents)
Age-
54% Have fun inappropriate 34%
content

Addictive
37% Learn language
behavior 23%
skills
Misinformation/
Learn topics
36% of interest
manipulative 22%
content

Positive Negative
85% experiences experiences 63%

During the interviews, parents did not

report children watch content in streaming
services different than nudity or violence.

Entertainment and educational also if

used in the right manner because there are To access videos or movies that are not
many adventure which we can see sitting at for his age, like violent movies where there is
home and it helps to know the world outside.” killing, and not appropriate stuff for his age.”
– Parent of a 17-year-old girl, India. – Parent of a 7-year-old boy, Brazil.

Risks and
related features
Access to non-child profile
The fact that some streaming services
have a general profile or adults' profile
Age-inappropriate content and that children could access those
RE & SKS

profiles may pose risks.

UR ED
RI

Parents fear their children

ES
AT AT

watch content that includes nudity,

FE L

violence, or content that

goes against their family values.

Content rating
Some parents expressed that the rating for movies and series does
not always align with their family values.
 A deep dive into five online services 35

Top parental strategies to protect their children online

(% of parents)

46%
Guide or educate
41%
Use parental controls
41%
Speak about the experience

In the interviews, parents shared additional strategies they use

to protect their children when using streaming services.

Suppose my child We’re used to discuss I’d say mostly for any
watches anything from my everything since he was young video streaming platform
account on Netflix then I get and we were watching movies where he has his own profile
notified instantly so that I can and series together.” set to a child. And he can only
take a step at the same – Parent of a 16-year-old watch specific things right
moment.” boy, KSA. now, such as G-rated shows.”
– Parent of a 17-year-old – Parent of a 6-year-old
girl, India. boy, U.S.

Parents reported their strategies were highly effective, but they stated they still
need some help to protect their children when using streaming services.

It’s only if she access the profile that is not the

of parents said their kids profile. She has access to the kids profile. If she
94% strategies were very effective
or effective in protecting their
accesses another profile, there will be other movie
options, different segments from (the ones for) her age,
children on streaming services you know? And I think that would be it. But if she accesses
her profile, there’s no risk.”
– Parent of a 6-year-old girl, Brazil.

It is the streaming online. As a Muslim, as I told

Disneyland which has programs for kids to you earlier we don’t want him to see something that is
observe its content more. Although they already nakedness, first of all, pornography and any other thing
block some content, but still there available that has to do with something that is very distant from
inappropriate content.” our culture.”
– Parent of a 17-year-old boy, KSA. – Parent of a 15-year-old boy, Nigeria.
36 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

5.5 User-generated content platforms

Parents identified services that offer user-generated notable that similar situations were not identified for
content as providing some of the greatest benefits any of the other online services covered. To protect
and potential risks. Parents recognized that their their children online, parents reported pre-approving
children had positive experiences learning from the content that their children can watch and
educational user-generated content, but they were monitoring their children’s use of user-generated
also less comfortable with their children using user- content platforms without their children knowing.
generated content platforms as compared to all 91 percent of parents felt that their strategies are
other online services. In interviews with parents, very effective in protecting their children on user-
some reported that their children were exposed to generated content platforms. Parents also stated
content related to self-harm and extreme violence, that they would like additional help to protect their
including content on suicide and animal cruelty. children from age-inappropriate content, such as
Although this was a small minority of parents, it is passwords and age controls.
 A deep dive into five online services 37

Figure 12. Protecting children using user-generated content platforms, parents’ perspectives

USER-GENERATED CONTENT PLATFORMS

Top positive experiences Top negative experiences

(% of parents) (% of parents)
Age-
50% Have fun inappropriate 38%
content

Learn topics Addictive

42% of interest behavior 31%

Misinformation/
Learn language
36% skills
manipulative 27%
content

Positive Negative
86% experiences experiences 73%

Age-inappropriate content in UGC is sometimes

related to self-harm and extreme violence.

There’s benefits, yeah. My child

does know things that for his age makes My kids were really into watching Peppa
him stand out in school. He likes to Pig. Unfortunately, they came across a YouTube
watch channels and contents that make page that re-enacted the episodes but with
him always into what’s happening. vulgar language and violent themes, like talking
History content.” about killing and other inappropriate content.”
– Parent of a 8-year-old boy, Brazil. – Parent of a 8-year-old boy, U.S.

Risks and
related features
User-generated content
Shorts and content recommended by the
algorithm could potentially harm children
Age-inappropriate
FE EL & S
SK

content
UR ED
RI

ES
AT AT

Children could watch content

R

that includes extreme violence

or self-harm
Advertising
Pop-ups and other types of unexpected
advertising include content in which parents
have less control
38 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Top parental strategies to protect their children online

(% of parents)

53%
Guide or educate
46%
Speak about the experience
41%
Monitor them without
them noticing

In the interviews, parents shared additional strategies they used to

protect their children when using user-generated content platforms.

If you’re not keeping a close eye on Whatever he watches is already seen by

your child, they could end up watching us, like I told you he follows ‘Saurabh Joshi’,
inappropriate content. It’s not just about so we beforehand watches his vlog, so the
age-appropriate videos; they can easily click content is safe for him, and Sambhavna’s
on any video and view it. So, when it comes to content also we watch with him.”
YouTube, I tend to be more vigilant.” – Parent of a 12-year-old boy, India.
– Parent of a 7-year-old boy, U.S.

I usually turn on my screen recorder when I let the younger two watch YouTube.”
– Parent of a 10-year-old boy, U.S.

Parents reported their strategies were highly effective, but they still need some
help to protect their children when using user-generated content platforms.

of parents said their

91%
strategies were very effective
or effective in protecting YouTube to erase inappropriate
their children on user- promoting ads and content.”
generated content platforms
– Parent of a 16-year-old boy, KSA.

I think, as I said, on YouTube, because it’s more The one I think I need help on is on
open... Those open platforms that don’t have age ratings YouTube; on YouTube we have a lot of things
and that you can’t put a password on. I think they could
there that will not benefit a child. So if they
put a password, like -- a platform that doesn’t have an
age filter, you should be allowed to put a password on it, can restrict children from going through that
that would be cool.” YouTube of a thing, it will be better.”
– Parent of a 7-year-old girl, Brazil. – Parent of a 12-year-old girl, Nigeria.
 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes 39

6 Conclusion
Focusing across five different online services—messaging applications, online games, social
media, streaming services, and user-generated content platforms—this report presents
insights on parents’ perceptions in terms of the benefits that these services provide,
perceived risks for their children’s online experiences, and the adaptive strategies that
parents employ in response to those risks. Additional insights into children’s perceptions
complement the study. This approach aims to address specific types of online engagement
and unique features of online services that are more likely to result in benefits, risks, harms,
or solutions as compared to children’s online screen time or internet usage more broadly.

6.1 Key points to keep 6.2. An approach based on evidence,

children safe online risk, and differentiation
Building upon the ITU’s Guidelines on Child Online Educators should raise awareness among children and
Protection (COP), this report underscores the collective parents about differentiated opportunities and online
responsibility of parents, educators, industry, and risks to educate children and families.
policymakers in bolstering online child protection. It
acknowledges the importance of involving parents, as Industry should consider the implications of different
well as children in the development and implementation levels of parental trust across services and how to address
of safeguarding strategies. these in practical terms. With this in mind, policymakers
too, should design legal, policy, or regulatory frameworks
For parents, this report offers additional insights that adequately address opportunities, risks, and potential
regarding key considerations for child online protection. harms to minors online.
For educators, it provides insights into the perceptions
and evaluations of families regarding children’s online Parents play a crucial role in recognizing the specificities
behaviors and highlights the need for additional support, of each service and responding accordingly to the risks
which may be provided through the educational sector. that each platform poses, and they should continue
For industry, the report highlights areas to strengthen to adapt their strategies according to their children’s
safety tools and factor in safety-by-design into overall unique needs. The research shows that parents often
experiences. For policymakers, the findings should have differing attitudes and levels of concern for different
be considered in discussions around new policy, services in the online ecosystem. This depends on a
legal, or regulatory frameworks. The research also has variety of factors, some of them personal while others
implications for educational awareness-raising programs are based on existing and identified harm typologies that
and interventions to which different stakeholders can the research highlights. It is also clear from the findings
contribute. that parents and children seek different solutions based
on the type of online service. While it is not possible for
Below are key points that parents, educators, industry, parents, educators, service providers, or policymakers to
and governments should consider when endeavoring to create a catch-all solution that completely prevents all
keep children safe online. harms, there are clear trends around the major concerns,
risks, and harms that would be worth addressing through
a risk-based, differentiated approach. This approach
should be built on a child rights-based approach that
considers the age and developmental maturity of children.
40 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

6.3 Empowering parents with tools 6.4 Collaboration

and awareness
Protecting children online requires close coordination and
Tools, such as parental controls and ratings, can be great collaboration between different stakeholders. A collective
allies for parents when it comes to protecting their children and holistic approach, where children, parents, educators,
and parents should be encouraged to actively implement ICT industries and governments work hand in hand will
and use such mechanisms. The report highlights areas in create a safer and more educational online environment
which to develop stronger tools to address gaps based for younger generations.
on service and ensure age-appropriate experiences.
The report points to parents playing a central role in
Digital services providers should continue to strengthen
safeguarding their children online and suggests that
educational offerings, making them as easy to use and
different stakeholders would benefit from more in-depth
accessible as possible.
engagement with diverse sets of parents to inform their
Educators play an important role as part of a wider practice. Through NGOs, school networks, Safer Internet
stakeholder approach, providing effective online safety Centers and other networks, parents could be brought
education in schools and more informal educational into industry working groups more broadly.
settings. Ideally, educators would have the resources
Policy makers also play an essential role in assessing
and capacity to integrate online safety into the general
how the various systems interact and in identifying the
curriculum and address issues as they arise on a more
areas where cross-sectoral cooperation is needed. They
ad hoc basis.
can actively seek to collaborate with parents, educators,
In addition, governments should ensure that age- children, industry, and other national and multilateral
appropriate digital literacy education is integrated institutions to support actions and awareness campaigns
into national educational curricula for all children. to ensure children are safe online.
Government-led internet safety awareness campaigns for
children, families, and educators are important to ensure
outreach and strategy to ensure effective distribution. In
addition, governments should ensure that parents are
informed about the existence of universal and systematic
child online protection mechanisms that they can turn
to when seeking help to identify, respond to and report
instances of online harm.
 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes 41

7  Annex A: Country briefs

42 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

BRAZIL

Figure A.1. Parents’ general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Strongly agree or agree

Undecided or disagree

“Using electronic devices and

technology is important for my
child to succeed in today’s world”

“I take pride in how

knowledgeable/savvy my
child is about technology”

In Brazil, a smaller share of parents (79 percent) reported that the use of technology is important for
their children’s success, compared to the overall sample (84 percent). The percentage of parents that
reported taking pride in their children being technologically savvy is in line with the average trend
observed in the rest of the countries.

Figure A.2. Technology and its top benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Learn digital
skills OG UGC Top two
services where
Learn language parents reported
skills S/TV UGC children having
the positive
experience
Have fun S/TV OG

Learning a skill or a language are two out of the three top potential benefits parents are most excited
about regarding their children’s internet usage. This is in line with the sample average. However, in
Brazil, more parents expressed excitement about their children using the internet to have fun than in
the other sampled countries.

In Brazil, parents reported their children more often having the top positive experiences with UGC,
streaming services, and online games. This is in line with the overall average in the rest of the countries.
 Annex A: Country briefs 43

Figure A.3. Parents’ top three concerns about their children online activities (% of parents)

Extreme violence/
pornography

Communicating
with strangers

Cyberbullying

Compared to the sample average, parents in Brazil worried more about their children communicating
with strangers and experiencing cyberbullying. Misinformation, bad influence, and age-inappropriate
content—all top concerns in the sample average—were not among the Brazilian parents’ top concerns.
But, as in the other countries sampled, exposure to extreme violence or pornography remains the
top concern for parents.

Figure A.4. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

Very comfortable or comfortable Neutral Concerned or very concerned

Streaming Online Messaging User-generated Social

Services Games Applications Content Platforms Media

Compared to the sample average, parents in Brazil are less comfortable with messaging applications,
social media, and UGC. Parents in Brazil are also more comfortable with online games and streaming
services than the sample average.
44 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure A.5. Top parental strategies to protect children per online service (% of parents)

SERVICES TOP STRATEGIES

Messaging
Guide (59%) Communicate (48%) Set rules (40%)
Applications

Online Games Guide (52%) Set rules (49%) Communicate (40%)

Social Media Guide (69%) Communicate (60%) Set rules (50%)

Streaming
Guide (54%) Ratings & advice (50%) Set rules (42%)
Services

User-generated
Guide (64%) Set rules (52%) Communicate (49%)
Content Platform

Although the strategies by service do not vary significantly according to the quantitative data, evidence
from the qualitative data indicates that parents’ strategies for child online protection vary by service.
During the interviews, it was evident that the approach of guiding or setting rules varies when parents
were asked what actions they take to protect their children based on each of the online services. In
contrast with the overall average, parents in Brazil do not include monitoring without their children
noticing as a strategy that they implement with the different online services. But overall monitoring
was a common strategy that Brazilian parents employed for messaging applications, social media, and
UGC, similar to the averages in other countries.

EGYPT

Figure A.6. Parents’ general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Strongly agree or agree

Undecided or disagree

“Using electronic devices and

technology is important for my
child to succeed in today’s world”

“I take pride in how

knowledgeable/savvy my
child is about technology”
 Annex A: Country briefs 45

In Egypt, parents reported viewing technology as a means for success, which is in line with parents in
the other sampled countries. Yet, the number of parents that reported being proud of their children’s
technological savviness was higher in Egypt than in other countries.

Figure A.7. Technology and its top benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Have fun
OG S/TV Top two
services where
Learn digital parents reported
skills OG SM children having
the positive
experience
Learn topics
of interest UGC SM

Parents in Egypt were most excited about their children having fun online, although this was closely
followed by learning digital skills, the top benefit reported by parents in the overall sample.

Interestingly, and in contrast with the results from the other analyzed countries, parents in Egypt were
more likely to state that their children could use social media to improve their digital skills and learn
about topics of interest. In the other sample countries, parents were more likely to associate UGC and
streaming with those experiences.

Figure A.8. Parents’ top three concerns about their children online activities (% of parents)

Extreme violence/
pornography

Misinformation/
manipulative
content
Age-
inappropriate
content

Egyptian parents’ concerns were in line with other sampled countries, although they felt more strongly
about these issues than other parents. Their top concern—expressed by an even larger share of
parents than in the other sampled countries—was exposure to extreme violence, misinformation and
manipulative content, and exposure to age-inappropriate content. For example, whereas 55 percent
of parents in the sample overall expressed concern for extreme violence and pornography, in Egypt
this percentage reached 68 percent. For misinformation, this percentage jumped from 43 percent in
other countries to 62 percent in Egypt. For age-inappropriate content, it rose from 37 percent in other
countries to 61 percent in Egypt.
46 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure A.9. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

Very comfortable or comfortable Neutral Concerned or very concerned

Online Messaging Streaming Social User-generated

Games Applications Services Media Content Platforms

Parents in Egypt were most comfortable with online games and messaging applications. Notably, a
large difference was observed in parents’ comfort levels with streaming services. On average among
all the analyzed countries, 78 percent of parents reported feeling very comfortable or comfortable with
streaming services whereas in Egypt only 56 percent reported feeling that way. However, they were
least comfortable with social media and UGC. In general, parents in Egypt were less comfortable with
all online services than the global average.

Figure A.10. Top parental strategies to protect children per online service (% of parents)

SERVICES TOP STRATEGIES

Messaging
Guide (49%) Communicate (43%) Parental controls (36%)
Applications

Online Games Guide (46%) Communicate (42%) Set rules (35%)

Social Media Guide (55%) Communicate (53%) Use service together (37%)

Streaming
Guide (51%) Communicate (45%) Use service together (44%)
Services

User-generated
Guide (56%) Communicate (51%) Parental controls (36%)
Content Platform
 Annex A: Country briefs 47

Although the strategies by service do not vary significantly according to the quantitative data, evidence
from the qualitative data indicates that parents’ child online protection strategies vary per service.
During the interviews, it was evident that the approach of guiding or setting rules varies when parents
were asked what actions they take to protect their children with each of the online services. Similar
to other countries, parents in Egypt reported using guidance and communication with their children
about the different online services as strategies to protect them. But in contrast to the general trend,
parents in Egypt reported that a strategy used for streaming and social media was to use the service
together with their children. This was not a strategy that was commonly brought up in discussions
with parents in the other countries sampled.

FRANCE

Figure A.11. Parents’ general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Strongly agree or agree

Undecided or disagree

“Using electronic devices and

technology is important for my
child to succeed in today’s world”

“I take pride in how

knowledgeable/savvy my
child is about technology”

Parents in France were less likely to express excitement about the benefits technology could offer their
children as compared to other surveyed countries. A lower percentage of parents in France reported
that using electronic devices and technology is important for their children’s success than in the other
countries sampled. Similarly, the percentage of parents in France that reported they felt proud of how
savvy their children are about technology was lower than in the other countries.

Figure A.12. Technology and its top benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Have fun
OG S/TV Top two
services where
Learn digital parents reported
skills OG UGC children having
the positive
Learn about experience
other countries UGC S/TV
& cultures
48 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Like in Egypt, having fun (46 percent) was the main benefit that excites parents about their children
going online, followed by learning digital skills (42 percent), and learning about other cultures and
countries (41 percent). In comparison to the general trend, parents in France did not report learning,
improving a language, or learning about topics of interest among the top aspects that excited them
about their children’s online activities. Similar to the general trend, parents in France perceived UGC
and streaming as services where their children can often learn. Online games were viewed as a service
that offers both fun and digital skills training.

Figure A.13. Parents’ top three concerns about their children online activities (% of parents)

Extreme violence/
pornography

Cyberbullying

Communicating
with strangers

Exposure to extreme violence or pornography remained the top concern for parents in France, in line
with the general trend. In contrast with the general trend, cyberbullying and communicating with
strangers were among the top concerns for parents in France, although 43 percent of parents or less
reported being concerned about either of these two items.

Figure A.14. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

Very comfortable or comfortable Neutral Concerned or very concerned

Streaming Online Messaging User-generated Social

Services Games Applications Content Platforms Media
 Annex A: Country briefs 49

Parents in France are generally most comfortable with streaming, followed by online games and
messaging applications, while they are least comfortable with social media and UGC. Comfort levels
with the different services in France follow a similar trend to the average of all the other analyzed
countries, although parents in France reported being slightly less comfortable than average with online
games and social media.

Figure A.15. Top parental strategies to protect children per online service (% of parents)

SERVICES TOP STRATEGIES

Messaging
Guide (36%) Set rules (34%) Communicate (33%)
Applications

Online Games Set rules (40%) Communicate (28%) Guide (27%)

Social Media Communicate (42%) Set rules (35%) Guide (31%)

Streaming
Set rules (39%) Parental controls (34%) Guide (32%)
Services

User-generated
Guide (41%) Set rules (40%) Communicate (38%)
Content Platform

While the strategies by service do not vary significantly according to the quantitative data, evidence
from the qualitative data indicates that the child online protection strategies of parents in France vary
per service. During the interviews, it was evident that the approach of guiding or setting rules varies
when parents were asked what actions they take to protect their children with each of the online
services. In contrast to the general trend, parents in France reported that their top strategy to protect
their children when using online games and streaming was to set rules for the use of these services.
In the overall sample, guiding was the top strategy among parents for both online services.
50 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

INDIA

Figure A.16. Parents’ general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Strongly agree or agree

Undecided or disagree

“Using electronic devices and

technology is important for my
child to succeed in today’s world”

“I take pride in how

knowledgeable/savvy my
child is about technology”

Parents in India seemed more excited about their children’s use of technology than in the other
analyzed countries. A larger percentage of parents reported that using devices and technology is
important for their children to succeed in today’s world and a larger percentage reported feeling proud
about their children’s knowledge about technology.

Figure A.17. Technology and its top benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Learn digital
skills UGC SM Top two
services where
Learn language parents reported
skills UGC S/TV children having
the positive
Learn about experience
other countries UGC S/TV
& cultures

The benefits that parents in India recognized about their children going online reflected the general
trend. Overall, parents in India were excited about the educational aspect of technology. In contrast
to the general trend, in which user-generated content platforms and online games were the most
common services where children learn digital skills, social media was perceived by parents in India
as the second most common service where children learn digital skills.
 Annex A: Country briefs 51

Figure A.18. Parents’ top three concerns about their children online activities (% of parents)

Misinformation/
manipulative
content

Extreme violence/
pornography

Negative
influence

The top concerns of parents in India were also in line with the rest of the sample average. Parents’
most common concerns in India were misinformation and manipulative content, closely followed by
exposure to extreme violence and negative influence.

Figure A.19. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

Very comfortable or comfortable Neutral Concerned or very concerned

Streaming Messaging Online User-generated Social

Services Applications Games Content Platforms Media

Parents’ positive view of technology in India was higher than the sample average. In line with this,
parents’ comfort levels in India with the different online services were higher than, or very similar to,
the general trend. Parents in India were most comfortable with streaming services, online games,
and messaging applications. Notably, parents in India reported feeling more comfortable with social
media and UGC than in other sampled countries.
52 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure A.20. Top parental strategies to protect children per online service (% of parents)

SERVICES TOP STRATEGIES

Messaging
Guide (47%) Communicate (47%) Monitor (46%)
Applications

Online Games Guide (45%) Communicate (44%) Ratings & advice (42%)

Social Media Communicate (55%) Guide (50%) Monitor (47%)

Streaming
Ratings & advice (48%) Communicate (48%) Use service together (45%)
Services

User-generated
Guide (58%) Parental controls (46%) Communicate (46%)
Content Platform

Although the strategies by service do not vary significantly according to the quantitative data, evidence
from the qualitative data indicates that parents’ child online protection strategies vary per service.
During the interviews, it was evident that the approach of guiding or setting rules varies when parents
were asked what actions they take to protect their children with each of the online services. When it
comes to parents’ strategies to protect their children online, in contrast with the general trend, parents
in India reported using rating and advice among their top strategies to protect their children with
online games and streaming.

INDONESIA

Figure A.21. Parents’ general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Strongly agree or agree

Undecided or disagree

“Using electronic devices and

technology is important for my
child to succeed in today’s world”

“I take pride in how

knowledgeable/savvy my
child is about technology”

The levels of importance parents place on technology for their children’s success as well as the level
of pride they take in their children’s technological proficiency is high in Indonesia and comparable
to the rest of the sample.
 Annex A: Country briefs 53

Figure A.22. Technology and its top benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Learn digital
skills UGC OG Top two
services where
Learn language parents reported
skills UGC S/TV children having
the positive
Learn about experience
other countries UGC S/TV
& cultures

Parents in Indonesia also have similar views regarding the benefits of their children’s usage of online
services more broadly. For example, parents in this country considered UGC and streaming to provide
the top benefits for their children, in line with the other countries in the sample.

Figure A.23. Parents’ top three concerns about their children online activities (% of parents)

Extreme violence/
pornography

Addictive
behavior

Misinformation/
manipulative
content

One notable distinction was that parents in Indonesia were more concerned about their children
developing addictive behaviors with online services than in other countries. This concern was not
among the top three general concerns reported in the quantitative survey.
54 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure A.24. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

Very comfortable or comfortable Neutral Concerned or very concerned

Streaming Messaging Online Social User-generated

Services Applications Games Media Content Platforms

The comfort levels of parents in Indonesia were similar to the general trend (higher comfort for
streaming, online games, and messaging) with small variation for messaging applications, with which
parents feel more comfortable in Indonesia than the average. Regarding online games, social media,
and UGC, parents in Indonesia are slightly less comfortable than the average.

Figure A.25. Top parental strategies to protect children per online service (% of parents)

SERVICES TOP STRATEGIES

Messaging
Guide (52%) Communicate (46%) Set rules (38%)
Applications

Online Games Guide (47%) Set rules (46%) Communicate (43%)

Social Media Guide (63%) Communicate (61%) Monitor (48%)

Streaming
Guide (52%) Use service together (42%) Set rules (41%)
Services

User-generated
Guide (62%) Communicate (46%) Parental controls (45%)
Content Platform

While the strategies by service do not vary significantly according to the quantitative data, evidence from
the qualitative data indicates that parents’ specific strategies to protect their children online do vary per
service. During the interviews, it was evident that the approach of guiding or setting rules varies when
parents were asked what actions they take to protect their children with each of the online services.
More than any other strategy, parents in Indonesia relied on providing guidance to their children as a
means of protecting them online. This was in line with the other sampled countries. Yet unlike other
countries, Indonesian parents’ strategies, such as using the service together with the child and using
parental controls, are among their top strategies for streaming and UGC, respectively.
 Annex A: Country briefs 55

NIGERIA

Figure A.26. Parents’ general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Strongly agree or agree

Undecided or disagree

“Using electronic devices and

technology is important for my
child to succeed in today’s world”

“I take pride in how

knowledgeable/savvy my
child is about technology”

A larger percentage of parents in Nigeria than in the other analyzed countries agreed that using
devices and technology is important for their children’s success in today’s world and are proud of
their children’s savviness with technology.

Figure A.27. Technology and its top benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Learn digital
skills OG UGC Top two
services where
Learn about parents reported
other countries children having
S/TV UGC
& cultures the positive
experience
Learn topics
of interest S/TV UGC

As in the general trend, learning digital skills is the top benefit parents perceived about their children
going online. Learning a different language was not reported to be as important for parents in Nigeria.
They consider learning about other countries, cultures, and topics of interest to be more important. UGC
and streaming are among the top services where parents reported their children getting educational
benefits. Online games were perceived as a service where children learn digital skills, besides having
fun, consistent with the trend found in the other countries.
56 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure A.28. Parents’ top three concerns about their children online activities (% of parents)

Extreme violence/
pornography

Misinformation/
manipulative
content
Age-
inappropriate
content

The top concerns for parents in Nigeria aligned with the general trend. But the top concern, exposure
to extreme violence or pornography, was higher in Nigeria than in the other countries. 70 percent of
parents in Nigeria reported being concerned about exposure to extreme violence and pornography,
whereas the average for the rest of the sample was only 55 percent.

Figure A.29. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

Very comfortable or comfortable Neutral Concerned or very concerned

Online Streaming Messaging User-generated Social

Games Services Applications Content Platforms Media

Parents in Nigeria generally had high comfort levels with online games and streaming services
compared to other types of services. With the exception of online games, Nigerian parents’ comfort
levels with the different services were lower for almost all the online services in comparison to the
average. Notably, the comfort level with social media in Nigeria is significantly lower than the average.
Less than half the parents (41 percent) reported feeling comfortable or very comfortable with social
media, whereas on average 60 percent of the parents sampled in other countries reported feeling this
way about social media services.
 Annex A: Country briefs 57

Figure A.30. Top parental strategies to protect children per online service (% of parents)

SERVICES TOP STRATEGIES

Messaging
Guide (58%) Communicate (47%) Parental controls (41%)
Applications

Online Games Guide (50%) Parental controls (46%) Ratings & advice (41%)

Social Media Guide (55%) Parental controls (54%) Monitor (52%)

Streaming
Parental controls (61%) Guide (56%) Ratings & advice (51%)
Services

User-generated
Parental controls (62%) Guide (50%) Monitor (49%)
Content Platform

Although the strategies by service do not vary significantly according to the quantitative data, evidence
from the qualitative data indicates that parents’ child online protection strategies vary per service.
During the interviews, it was evident that the approach of guiding or setting rules varies when parents
were asked what actions they take to protect their children with each of the online services.

Parents in Nigeria commonly reported using parental controls with several of the services. Nevertheless,
during the interviews in Nigeria, parents expressed limited knowledge about parental controls and when
asked about these tools they often associated them with offline monitoring strategies. This indicates
that knowledge of these tools is not widespread among parents.

In contrast to the global average, parents in Nigeria did not report using communication as one of their
top three strategies to protect their children for the different online services.
58 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

SAUDI ARABIA (KSA)

Figure A.31. Parents’ general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Strongly agree or agree

Undecided or disagree

“Using electronic devices and

technology is important for my
child to succeed in today’s world”

“I take pride in how

knowledgeable/savvy my
child is about technology”

Parents in KSA were generally excited about the importance of their children using devices and
technology to succeed in today’s world and proud of how savvy their children are about technology,
although this was slightly lower than the average among surveyed countries.

Figure A.32. Technology and its top benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Learn language
skills S/TV UGC Top two
services where
Learn digital parents reported
skills SM UGC children having
the positive
Learn about experience
other countries SM S/TV
& cultures

The three top benefits KSA parents reported about their children going online were the same as in the
sample overall. As for the services associated with each benefit, parents in the KSA reported social
media as a top service where their children experienced benefits related to learning digital skills
and about other countries and cultures. This is similar to the results in Egypt where parents reported
that social media is among the top two services where children in that country learn digital skills and
about topics of interest. In all the other countries the top online services associated with these positive
experiences were UGC and streaming services.
 Annex A: Country briefs 59

Figure A.33. Parents’ top three concerns about their children online activities (% of parents)

Extreme violence/
pornography

Misinformation/
manipulative
content
Age-
inappropriate
content

Parents in KSA have the same concerns as parents in the other sampled countries.

Figure A.34. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

Very comfortable or comfortable Neutral Concerned or very concerned

Online Messaging Streaming Social User-generated

Games Applications Services Media Content Platforms

Parents in KSA are generally less comfortable than parents in the other sampled countries with online
services. Notably, parents in KSA reported being significantly less comfortable with streaming services
(64 percent) than parents in the general trend (78 percent). Parents were least comfortable with social
media and UGC services.
60 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure A.35. Top parental strategies to protect children per online service (% of parents)

SERVICES TOP STRATEGIES

Messaging
Guide (50%) Communicate (44%) Monitor (43%)
Applications

Online Games Communicate (43%) Monitor (40%) Older child helps (38%)

Social Media Guide (51%) Communicate (49%) Set rules (47%)

Streaming
Guide (49%) Communicate (48%) Parental controls (43%)
Services

User-generated
Communicate (51%) Guide (47%) Monitor (45%)
Content Platform

Although the strategies by service do not vary significantly according to the quantitative data, evidence
from the qualitative data indicates that parents’ child online protection strategies vary per service.
During the interviews, it was evident that the approach of guiding or setting rules varies when parents
were asked what actions they take to protect their children with each of the online services. Parents
in KSA followed similar strategies to protect their children as the overall sample average, but reported
implementing some variations regarding online games and streaming. They incorporate their older
children to assist with their younger children when using the service and using parental controls,
respectively.

TURKEY

Figure A.36. Parents’ general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Strongly agree or agree

Undecided or disagree

“Using electronic devices and

technology is important for my
child to succeed in today’s world”

“I take pride in how

knowledgeable/savvy my
child is about technology”
 Annex A: Country briefs 61

Turkish parents have a similar perspective to the overall average regarding the importance of using
devices and technology for their children’s success, but they felt less proud than parents in the general
trend regarding how knowledgeable their children are about technology.

Figure A.37. Technology and its top benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Learn digital
skills UGC OG Top two
services where
Learn language parents reported
skills S/TV UGC children having
the positive
experience
Have fun OG S/TV

Having fun is among the top three benefits parents reported regarding their children’s online usage,
but learning digital skills and languages remained important benefits as well, in line with the general
trend. The services parents associated with the different benefits are in line with the general trends.

Figure A.38. Parents’ top three concerns about their children online activities (% of parents)

Extreme violence/
pornography

Cyberbullying

Negative
influence

In contrast to the general trend, cyberbullying is among the top three concerns for parents in Turkey.
Cyberbullying was also among the top three concerns for parents in Brazil and France.
62 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure A.39. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

Very comfortable or comfortable Neutral Concerned or very concerned

Streaming Online Messaging Social User-generated

Services Games Applications Media Content Platforms

Parents in Turkey were most comfortable with streaming services, followed by online games and
messaging applications. Parents in Turkey reported similar levels of comfort with the different online
services to the general trend, except for levels of comfort for social media and UGC. In the case of these
two online services, the comfort levels of parents in Turkey decreased in comparison to the general
trend, from 60 percent to 51 percent and from 57 percent to 49 percent, respectively.

Figure A.40. Top parental strategies to protect children per online service (% of parents)

SERVICES TOP STRATEGIES

Messaging
Guide (40%) Monitor (34%) Parental controls (30%)
Applications

Online Games Guide (38%) Set rules (33%) Monitor (33%)

Social Media Guide (48%) Monitor (42%) Communication (38%)

Streaming
Parental controls (40%) Guide (39%) Monitor (34%)
Services

User-generated
Guide (49%) Monitor (45%) Set rules (36%)
Content Platform

Although the strategies by service do not vary significantly according to the quantitative data, evidence
from the qualitative data indicates that parents’ child online protection strategies vary per service.
During the interviews, it was evident that the approach of guiding or setting rules varies when parents
were asked what actions they take to protect their children with each of the online services.

Among the strategies parents use to protect their children, monitoring came up as a popular strategy
across all online services in Turkey and, notably, communication was not among the top three parental
strategies with any of the online services.
 Annex A: Country briefs 63

UNITED STATES

Figure A.41. Parents’ general perception about their children’s use of technology (% of parents)

Strongly agree or agree

Undecided or disagree

“Using electronic devices and

technology is important for my
child to succeed in today’s world”

“I take pride in how

knowledgeable/savvy my
child is about technology”

A higher percentage of parents in the United States than in any other sampled country reported that
the use of electronic devices and technology is important for their children to succeed in today’s
world and that they take pride in how knowledgeable their children are about technology.

Figure A.42. Technology and its top benefits for children according to parents (% of parents)

Learn digital
skills MA S/TV Top two
services where
Learn topics parents reported
of interest MA S/TV children having
the positive
Learn about experience
other countries
UGC SM
& cultures

The top three online benefits for children that U.S. parents identified all related to learning, and this
was in line with the other countries surveyed. However, parents associated messaging applications as
a top service where their children can learn digital skills and about topics of their interest. This is not
in line with the general trend.14 In the general trend, parents identified user-generated platforms and
streaming services as top services where their children can acquire these skills. Moreover, learning other
languages was less important and learning about topics of interest was more important for parents in
the United States than in the overall sample.

14 During the qualitative interviews, some parents reported Discord as a popular platform for children in the United States. Discord is a
messaging application and social media platform that offers a variety of content. Its popularity among U.S. children could help explain
this trend.
64 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Figure A.43. Parents’ top three concerns about their children online activities (% of parents)

Misinformation/
manipulative
content

Extreme violence/
pornography

Age-
inappropriate
content

Parents’ top three concerns in the United States aligned with the general trend overall, but the order
was different in the United States than in the other countries. In the U.S., pornography and extreme
violence is the second most common concern while it is the most common concern for parents in
the overall sample. Similarly, to France and India, the top concern reported by parents in the United
States did not exceed 43 percent, indicating that there was no single concern that worried the majority
of parents.

Figure A.44. Parents’ comfort levels by online service (% of parents)

Very comfortable or comfortable Neutral Concerned or very concerned

Streaming Online Messaging User-generated Social

Services Games Applications Content Platforms Media

Parents in the United States reported feeling more comfortable with the online services than parents
in the overall sample. The difference was particularly significant for social media and UGC. 60 percent
of parents in the overall sample reported feeling comfortable or very comfortable with their children
using social media, while this number increased to 80 percent in the United States. Similarly, with UGC,
57 percent of parents in the overall sample reported feeling comfortable or very comfortable with their
children using UGC, while this number increased to 82 percent in the United States.
 Annex A: Country briefs 65

Figure A.45. Top parental strategies to protect children per online service (% of parents)

SERVICES TOP STRATEGIES

Messaging
Communication (51%) Ratings & advice (51%) Use service together (46%)
Applications

Online Games Ratings & advice (49%) Communication (48%) Monitor (45%)

Social Media Communication (53%) Ratings & advice (50%) Monitor (48%)

Streaming
Communication (50%) Ratings & advice (48%) Guide (46%)
Services

User-generated
Communication (53%) Ratings & advice (48%) Monitor (46%)
Content Platform

Even if the strategies by service do not vary significantly according to the quantitative data, evidence
from the qualitative data indicates that parents’ specific strategies to protect their children online do
vary per service. During the interviews, it was evident that the approach of guiding or setting rules
varies when parents were asked what actions they take to protect their children with each of the online
services. In contrast to the overall sample, parents in the U.S. did not report using guidance as one of
their top strategies to protect children online.
66 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

8  Annex B: Methodology
TMG worked in partnership with Geopoll, an international survey deployment
and data collection firm, to conduct an online survey in nine countries
and in-depth online qualitative interviews in five countries.15

This work was carried out between April and July 2023. Data analysis
The survey resulted in a cross-sectional dataset used
as part of the quantitative analysis that consisted of During the quantitative analysis, the first step was
16 multiple choice questions. The in-depth interviews to prepare the raw data for analysis. For this phase,
with parents were used for the qualitative analysis. For TMG conducted a quality assurance process to ensure
this, a script was developed to guide the interviews, that the data complied with quality standards and the
which consisted of 25 questions that parents and their responses aligned with the survey logic. The quality
children could answer freely and in their own words. assurance process included checking for missing data,
These questions were not multiple choice, and the removing outliers, and transforming variables to conduct
answers were not confined to a specified set of options. the analysis. TMG created a set of new variables to draw
The interview script included 20 questions targeted at possible correlations and trends in the data, including
parents and five questions for children. age groups (5-8, 9-12, and 13-17), a duration of screen
time variable to assess the number of hours that parents
The target population for the survey and the interviews allowed their children to use online services per week
were people with at least one child aged 5 to 17 that used (1-7, 8-14, 15-21, 22-28, 29-35, and more than 35), and a
at least one online service.16 Participants were randomly variable to classify parents according to their parenting
selected. TMG and Geopoll surveyed approximately 5,000 styles, including authoritarian, authoritative, permissive,
individuals (approximately 500 people per country). The and uninvolved. Other variables included the number of
surveys were deployed across the nine countries via a devices children used and the level of supervision for
mobile application. Geopoll conducted a total of 100 each type of device (dependent on if the child owned
in-depth interviews with parents and children (20 in the device or if it was shared with their parents). During
each country). All interviews were conducted online, the second phase, TMG conducted statistical analyses
and for ethical reasons, parents were present during the of the data sets at a general level and per age, gender,
interviews with their children. Interviews were conducted and country. The analysis was conducted using RStudio.
in the local languages. A pilot was conducted to quality
check the survey and interview script, as well as the For the qualitative analysis, TMG conducted a first read
translations, to ensure that the collected data would be of the interviews to assess their general quality and
valid and reliable. consistency. Data processing was then conducted using
thematic analysis. The mix-method approach in two phases
utilized in the research allowed for the quantitative data
to inform the qualitative search. Specific topics related
to parenting styles, risk perceptions, comfort levels, and
types of age-inappropriate content were included in the
qualitative interviews and classified by themes during the
analysis. Some of the themes during analysis included
(1) differentiated parenting styles; (2) aspects that impact
comfort levels; (3) online services risks and experiences
differentiation; (4) levels of comfort per online service;
and (5) features contributing to risks, among others.

15  he nine countries for the quantitative survey are Brazil, Egypt, France, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United States and the five
T
countries for the qualitative survey are Brazil, India, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and the United States.
16  he quantitative survey only covered five online services: messaging applications, online games (no distinction was made between single and multiplayer online
T
games), streaming services, social media, and user-generated content platforms
 Annex B: Methodology 67

Assumptions and limitations During the qualitative interviews, caregivers were

considered as individuals that (besides parents) could also
Due to practical limitations, Geopoll only surveyed and be well suited to answer questions about the children’s
interviewed parents with children that have access to the online safety. In an attempt to include caregivers in
internet at home or on their mobile devices. Children that the qualitative interviews, the interviewer let parents
access the internet through other means, such as through know that if anyone else from the household who knew
their school or at a friend’s home, were excluded. While about the children’s experience and wanted to participate
this is a known limitation of the survey, its potential in the interview could join, but no caregiver ended up
impact is limited in scope as most children connect to participating in an interview.
online services via their mobile phones or home devices.

The survey did not ask respondents to identify their socio- Children safeguards
economic status, ethnicity, the language they spoke at
home, or whether they reside in an urban or rural area, For the in-depth interviews, TMG and Geopoll were
and only the in-depth interviews asked the parents about committed to ensuring the well-being and security of
their level of education, although no disaggregation or child participants. To this end, the interviewers were
analysis was conducted based on education levels. These trained in and applied well-established best practices
factors influence the probability of someone using (or not from the research community to protect children during
using) the internet. However, the aim of this report is not the interview process.18
to determine who uses the internet and why, but to learn
more about the behavior of existing users. Future research The respondents were given informed consent sheets and
on the topic could include disaggregation between parents information about the interview prior to the interviews
in rural versus urban areas or based on educational levels, and during the recruitment process.19 Assurances were
as these are variables that could affect parents’ digital made regarding anonymity and confidentiality before
literacy levels and impact the approaches that parents the interviews and confirmed at the beginning of the
take to protect their children online.17 interviews. Geopoll, the data collection partner, did not
share personally identifiable information (PII) with TMG
The quantitative survey was directed at parents. The at any point. In accordance with applicable data privacy
assumption was that parents are the most appropriate regulations, all data were stored on secure servers and
people to ask questions regarding their children’s with appropriate security controls for data processing.
online safety and to learn what approaches they use to Below are the main aspects that TMG and Geopoll
protect their children online. However, asking parents considered during the research process.
introduces the possibility that the data are affected
by a social desirability bias, defined as a bias toward Consent
answering questions in ways that are likely to meet
societal expectations rather than reflect actual practices. All families received the consent form and provided
This would reduce the accuracy of the data collected. written consent before the interview. Advance, written
For example, this bias may motivate parents to answer parental consent was a prerequisite for parents and
questions in a way that gives the impression that they are their children to participate in the interview process.
more assertive when protecting their children than they Children also provided verbal agreement to participate
really are. While little could be done to reduce this bias in the interview.
in the quantitative survey, the in-depth interviews offered
the opportunity to gain a more granular understanding of
what parents are doing to protect their children online and
to probe parents’ styles and strategies in greater depth.
This helped reduce the potential for parents to misguide
the interviewer. Future studies could utilize industry data
to cross check and compare with data collected from
parents to minimize social desirability bias.

17 Nikken and Jansz, 2014.

18 UNICEF, Global Kids Online, (2016)
19 Information shared with participants included name of the organization conducting the research, details of researchers to be contacted in case participants
had questions, topic of the survey, length, and the need to have a parent present during the first part of the interview and child and parent present during the
second part of the interview.
68 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

Ethical practices
The best interest of the child was at the center of the research process. Expert moderators were trained
to handle individual situations and evaluate if the interview should continue or not in case ethical
concerns arose. In deploying that judgment, the child’s best interest was the number one priority. The
moderators were instructed that the research must not harm the children at any point. The children
were instructed that there are no right or wrong answers and that they could stop the interview at any
time and skip any questions. Three main aspects related to children’s safeguarding were shared with
moderators during training:

● Children have the right to be heard, to freely express their views on all matters that affect them,
and to exercise freedom of expression, thought, association, and access to information.
● All participation is voluntary and negotiable, and children have a right to withdraw at any point
or refuse to engage in activities or respond to questions at any point.
● All staff should conduct themselves with honesty, integrity, and impartiality.

Additionally, TMG and Geopoll shared with moderators during their training ample information and
recommendations related to parental coercion, power dynamics, distress, and gentle questioning
styles for children.
 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes 69

9  Annex C: Sample details

Quantitative surveys

BRAZIL No. % EGYPT No. %

Total and percentage Total and percentage

545 11% 521 10%
over total sample over total sample

Online services Online services

Messaging applications 346 63% Messaging applications 241 46%

Online games 465 85% Online games 390 75%

Social media 305 56% Social media 300 58%

Streaming 477 88% Streaming 195 37%

UGC 463 85% UGC 381 73%

Children age Children age

Parents of children (ages 5-8) 211 39% Parents of children (ages 5-8) 202 39%

Parents of children (ages 9-12) 151 28% Parents of children (ages 9-12) 157 30%

Parents of children (ages 13-17) 183 34% Parents of children (ages 13-17) 162 31%

Children gender Children gender

Boys 305 56% Boys 309 59%

Girls 238 44% Girls 212 41%

Other 2 0% Other 0 0%
70 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

FRANCE No. % INDIA No. %

Total and percentage Total and percentage

513 10% 680 14%
over total sample over total sample

Online services Online services

Messaging applications 195 38% Messaging applications 390 57%

Online games 327 64% Online games 548 81%

Social media 194 38% Social media 416 61%

Streaming 386 75% Streaming 462 68%

UGC 325 63% UGC 483 71%

Children age Children age

Parents of children (ages 5-8) 211 41% Parents of children (ages 5-8) 318 47%

Parents of children (ages 9-12) 134 26% Parents of children (ages 9-12) 171 25%

Parents of children (ages 13-17) 168 33% Parents of children (ages 13-17) 191 28%

Children gender Children gender

Boys 281.0 55% Boys 392.0 58%

Girls 231.0 45% Girls 288.0 42%

Other 1.0 0% Other 0.0 0%

 Annex C: Sample details 71

INDONESIA No. % NIGERIA No. %

Total and percentage Total and percentage

527 11% 536 11%
over total sample over total sample

Online services Online services

Messaging applications 328 62% Messaging applications 163 30%

Online games 366 69% Online games 380 71%

Social media 288 55% Social media 172 32%

Streaming 316 60% Streaming 284 53%

UGC 455 86% UGC 180 34%

Children age Children age

Parents of children (ages 5-8) 279 53% Parents of children (ages 5-8) 312 58%

Parents of children (ages 9-12) 102 19% Parents of children (ages 9-12) 120 22%

Parents of children (ages 13-17) 146 28% Parents of children (ages 13-17) 104 19%

Children gender Children gender

Boys 286.0 54% Boys 304.0 57%

Girls 241.0 46% Girls 230.0 43%

Other 0.0 0% Other 2.0 0%

72 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

SAUDI ARABIA No. % TURKEY No. %

Total and percentage Total and percentage

555 11% 579 12%
over total sample over total sample

Online services Online services

Messaging applications 281 51% Messaging applications 294 51%

Online games 377 68% Online games 440 76%

Social media 277 50% Social media 295 51%

Streaming 292 53% Streaming 389 67%

UGC 403 73% UGC 464 80%

Children age Children age

Parents of children (ages 5-8) 254 46% Parents of children (ages 5-8) 315 54%

Parents of children (ages 9-12) 151 27% Parents of children (ages 9-12) 125 22%

Parents of children (ages 13-17) 150 27% Parents of children (ages 13-17) 139 24%

Children gender Children gender

Boys 319.0 57% Boys 354.0 61%

Girls 235.0 42% Girls 225.0 39%

Other 1.0 0% Other 0.0 0%

 Annex C: Sample details 73

Qualitative surveys

UNITED STATES No. % BRAZIL No. %

Total and percentage Total and percentage

515 10% 20 20%
over total sample over total sample

Online services Online services

Messaging applications 360 70% Messaging applications 17 85%

Online games 449 87% Online games single player 18 90%

Online games multiplayer 15 75%

Social media 417 81%
Social media 9 45%
Streaming 431 84%
Streaming 20 100%
UGC 391 76%
UGC 20 100%

Children age
Children age
Parents of children (ages 5-8) 146 28%
5-8 10 50%
Parents of children (ages 9-12) 108 21%
9-12 5 25%
Parents of children (ages 13-17) 261 51%
13-17 5 25%

Children gender Children gender

Boys 292.0 57% Boys 10 50%
Girls 223.0 43% Girls 10 50%

Other 0.0 0% Other 0 0%

74 Safeguarding Children Online: A service-specific view on risks and parental attitudes

INDIA No. % NIGERIA No. %

Total and percentage Total and percentage

20 20% 20 20%
over total sample over total sample

Online services Online services

Messaging applications 10 50% Messaging applications 15 75%

Online games single player 12 60% Online games single player 11 55%

Online games multiplayer 5 25% Online games multiplayer 5 25%

Social media 9 45% Social media 7 35%

Streaming 15 75% Streaming 19 95%

UGC 19 95% UGC 16 80%

Children age Children age

5-8 10 50% 5-8 7 35%

9-12 6 30% 9-12 6 30%

13-17 4 20% 13-17 7 35%

Children gender Children gender

Boys 9 45% Boys 10 50%

Girls 11 55% Girls 10 50%

Other 0 0% Other 0 0%
 Annex C: Sample details 75

SAUDI ARABIA No. % UNITED STATES No. %

Total and percentage Total and percentage

20 20% 20 20%
over total sample over total sample

Online services Online services

Messaging applications 14 70% Messaging applications 11 55%

Online games single player 19 95% Online games single player 17 85%

Online games multiplayer 18 90% Online games multiplayer 15 75%

Social media 16 80% Social media 7 35%

Streaming 18 90% Streaming 20 100%

UGC 20 100% UGC 20 100%

Children age Children age

5-8 5 25% 5-8 10 50%

9-12 6 30% 9-12 6 30%

13-17 9 45% 13-17 4 20%

Children gender Children gender

Boys 12 60% Boys 10 50%

Girls 8 40% Girls 10 50%

Other 0 0% Other 0 0%
Telecommunications Management Group, Inc.

www.tmgtelecom.com