When it comes to children online the key to safety is for parents to be vigilant

Today’s report by CyberSafeIreland on the dangers lurking on the internet is a wake-up call to parents, educators, and anyone who cares about the welfare of children.

Research by the children’s internet safety charity, which publishes its second annual report today, shows that one-third of Irish youngsters have rarely or never spoken to their parents about online safety, and many are spending in excess of four hours a day online.

While some of the charity’s findings are a cause of concern for parents, the report should be read judicially and not be viewed with alarm, or become the cause of panic.

For instance, the duration of internet activity may not, in itself, be a problem.

In many instances, younger people have simply swapped the television for the laptop or smartphone, as a source of harmless entertainment.

However, unlike the passivity of watching TV, laptops and smartphones are two-streets: they can entertain and inform, while also being a useful tool of communication.

But they present an unrivaled opportunity for sexual exploitation, abuse, bullying, and other forms of nefarious activity.

While access to technology can be hugely beneficial to children, it is up to adults to recognise that young people are uniquely vulnerable to its dangers, because they are in a process of emotional, as well as physical, development.

Those dangers are also entirely global and no respecter of borders.

Consider the shocking case of Blake Robert Johnson, an American sex offender who groomed more than 100 girls over the internet. He had at least four Irish victims.

One particularly worrying revelation was that 22% of children surveyed by CyberSafeIreland were found to be in contact with a stranger, many of them on a regular basis.

The question is what should parents, educators, and the authorities do to address such dangers.

A recent proposal by Jim Daly, the chairman of the Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs, suggests prosecuting and fining parents and retailers, if they allow children unrestricted access to the internet.

The Fine Gael TD for Cork South-West has said he was prompted to act after the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children told his committee that internet habits are “the single greatest threat to children in our time”.

While his intervention is worthwhile, in raising awareness of the issue, such a punitive approach, which seeks to criminalise parents, may be unworkable.

The key to internet safety for children lies in the hands of vigilant parents, who are prepared to educate themselves and work with their offspring in ensuring their safety.

That means a certain measure of supervision and monitoring of children, even if they find that intrusive and objectionable.

It may be counterintuitive, but invading a child’s privacy may be the most loving thing a parent can do.