ISPCC urges parental vigilance over online grooming of children

The ISPCC has urged parents to talk to their children about their online activity after research highlighted the vital role they play in protecting minors from sexual predators.

The report from the University of Birmingham and the Child Exploitation and Online Protection centre in Britain, documented a growing trend of children being groomed for online sexual abuse.

The study said children whose internet activities are monitored and who have an open dialogue with their parents about what they do or see online are better protected from offenders and more resilient to the techniques they use.

It said adolescents who take risks online, by having sexualised chats or exchanging sexual images, are particularly prone to the sophisticated tactics of online predators.

“Children may be targeted because of their vulnerability but any child can be a victim,” said Peter Davies, chief executive of CEOP.

“What is apparent is that parents and carers can make that vital difference whether or not a child becomes a victim of these ruthless predators online.”

The report raised concerns about the rise in smartphone use among adolescents, with six out of 10 12- to 15-year-olds now owning one.

Built-in cameras, as well as a new generation of messaging apps, is making it much easier for children to go online and share images away from parental supervision.

There have been a number of recent cases in Ireland involving adult men who groomed minors through online social networking sites and subsequently sexually assaulted them.

“We did a report last year on young people and their internet behaviour, and one stark finding was that about a quarter of young people don’t use privacy settings on these sites,” said Lisa Collins, information and policy officer at the ISPCC.

“Young people don’t have an awareness of posting things, they don’t think the public can see this or use it for another purpose. We’re really concerned about that.”

Ms Collins said that half of young people use the internet alone in their bedroom.

“Parents are not aware what young people are looking at,” she said. “If their child is going out, parents want to know where they are going, who are they meeting, so if they are going online, parents need to know who are they talking to.”

Ms Collins said that, of the 18,000 children surveyed, some 2,000 met someone in person after meeting them online.

“We would definitely caution against that. This is all part of the parents’ role in communicating with children,” she said.

“It is part of the parents’ job to ensure their children are safe. That involves a certain amount of monitoring. But keep communication open. Ask them what are they doing, try and understand.

“Parents have a hugely important role in this.”

* The Safe Click Code, advice for parents and children, is available online at: http://exa.mn/ha

* Staying Safe Online, advice for children, is at: http://exa.mn/hb