Young People: Understanding the Online Risks

In today’s increasingly digital world, kids interact using digital technology almost constantly. In fact, one prominent study found that texting is now the number one mode of communication for young people, far surpassing in-person interactions and phone calls. Another study found that more than half of American teens log on to a social media site at least once per day, and nearly a quarter log on 10 or more times per day. Yet another study found that kids now spend an average of 11.5 hours per day engaged with digital devices. Many of those hours are spent using two or more technologies simultaneously. As most kids are awake for only 15 or 16 hours per day, somewhere between 71 and 76 percent of the average child’s day is digital.

Because of this, parents (who are usually less tech-savvy and tech-connected than their kids) often express concern about their children’s online safety. For the most part these fears are media-driven and overblown. That said, they are not exactly ungrounded, especially when Internet search engines and GPS apps are making it more and more difficult to maintain one’s privacy. This is doubly true for young people, who often don’t fully understand the need to withhold certain information. Frankly, most kids are not aware that sharing personal data via texts, emails, or in chats—even by simply naming their school, giving their full name, or mentioning a parent’s employer—can create real-life risks.

Some of the more common digital dangers for children include:

Porn – Pornography of every ilk imaginable is available 24/7 on virtually any digital device. All that anyone, regardless of age, needs to do is find a porn site and click a button that says “Yes, I’m 18.” There is no need to display a driver’s license as proof of age or even to pay with a credit card, as most online porn is now available for free. As such, younger and younger kids are looking at porn. Recent research suggests the average age of first exposure to Internet porn is now 11.

Sexting – The digital cameras built into smartphones and computers make it incredibly easy for a kid to impulsively take a provocative self-photo and send it to another person. Unfortunately, once that image is sent the child loses all control over it; the recipient may keep it private, forward it to others, or post it online for public viewing. For many teens, sexted images are redefining what it means to have a bad break-up, as resentful former boyfriends or girlfriends can send and/or post an ex’s nude image pretty much anywhere, anytime. Of further concern is the fact that when minors sext a photo, even to other teens, they are (usually unwittingly) violating laws that prohibit the making and dissemination of child pornography.

Cyberbullying – The deliberate, repeated, and hostile use of digital technology to harm other people is a new and painfully ubiquitous form of childhood torture. And it is nearly always perpetrated by other kids. Fortunately, government agencies are beginning to take action against cyberbullying by providing useful direction and education to both parents and educators, and also by passing laws prohibiting such activity.

Stranger Danger – Children can be vulnerable to sexual predators through the Internet and smartphone apps. Typically, predators seek kids who appear amenable to seduction, primarily teens who post sexually provocative photos or videos (of themselves or others), and those who are willing to talk about sex with online strangers. Some predators are taking advantage of the growing popularity of webcams and video chat, arranging video rather than in-person meetings with their underage victims. A sneaky new trick is paying female prostitutes to engage in webcam sex with teen boys. The predator records the video chat session, which is very easy to do, thus creating instant child porn with an unwitting albeit willing participant. Sometimes the video is kept for private use, other times it is shared online—and the victim has no control over this.

It is important to state, very clearly, that the vast majority of children’s digital interactions are completely benign. For the most part, kids use digital devices to interact with each other and the world just as they do in-person, only faster and on a wider scale. For them, the Internet and related technologies are simply useful, totally accepted, routinely utilized tools for socialization. Yes, there are dangers online, but there are dangers in the real-world, too. As such, a parent’s “digital job” is not to hover and engird, but to educate and trust, just as parents have always done. Next week’s blog will discuss the best ways to accomplish this.