Nearly half of UK 10-15-year-olds are worried about going online, with a similar number claiming they’ve been exposed to an online ‘risk’ in the past, according to new reports released to coincide with Safer Internet Day.
Russian AV firm Kaspersky Lab polled 1000 British children to find 49% are afraid of going online, whether because they’re scared of: being bullied (21%); asked to do something they’d be uncomfortable with (18%); asked to do something illegal (13%) or personal information getting into the wrong hands (10%).
In addition, over a third (36%) claimed they’d regretted posting something in the past because it negatively affected a peer.
The results chime to an extent with Microsoft research which claimed 49% of 13-17-year-olds it spoke to have been exposed to intrusive, behavioral, sexual or reputational online risk in the past.
Also, nearly a quarter of adults and teenagers (23%) said they’d experienced the latest such ‘risk’ within the past month.
Reassuringly though, teenagers (45%) are as confident as adults (43%) in managing “uncivil behavior,” and they’re much more clued up about where to get help if necessary (60% versus 16%).
Microsoft interviewed netizens in 14 countries including the US, Germany, Australia, France and Russia to develop a Digital Civility Index (DCI) measuring consumers’ lifetime exposure to online risk.
It ranked the UK as number one – that is, the lowest online risk exposure and highest Digital Civility rating.
The reports and many like them have been designed to coincide with Safer Internet Day, a global awareness-raising event taking place today with the mission statement, Be the change: unite for a better internet.
Microsoft’s five top tips for safer browsing include using unique passwords for each device; choosing friends carefully on social media; protecting sensitive personal information and setting clear online guidelines for children.