Warning to watch children’s internet contacts as some in contact with strangers, warn CyberSafeIreland

Almost one in five young children are spending more than four hours per day online and some are in contact with strangers through gaming or social media, child internet safety charity CyberSafeIreland has warned.

Calling for greater priority to be given to internet safety education, CyberSafeIreland said according to a survey it carried out most national school teachers do not feel equipped to educate children on internet safety.

While many connections are harmless, CyberSafeIreland says there are cases where the contact is of significant concern, particularly for the 5% of children who are in touch with a stranger daily. In all, 28% of the children surveyed are in contact with a stranger either occasionally or every day though through online gaming or accepting social media requests from people they do not know.