How Does Online Grooming Happen?
Groomers target children on platforms they know are popular—whether it’s social media, gaming sites, or online forums. They often cast a wide net, sending friend requests or messages to multiple kids and waiting to see who responds. The goal is to strike up a conversation and build a bond.
Some groomers pretend to be the same age as their victims, using fake photos and accounts to seem relatable. Others may not hide their real age and instead take on roles that children might look up to, like a coach, influencer, or mentor. Groomers are incredibly good at what they do—they share the same interests, talk the same way, and seem to “get” the child they’re targeting.
How to stay safer online:
Keep personal information private
Reviewing apps, site, apps, and games they use
Keep personal information private
Why is it so critical that you hide your children personal information? It’s because personal information is often traded online because there are a lot of things that can be done with it. Private details which could identify them in the real world – name, age, gender, phone number, home address, school name, and photographs – should only
Why is it so critical that you hide your children personal information? It’s because personal information is often traded online because there are a lot of things that can be done with it. Private details which could identify them in the real world – name, age, gender, phone number, home address, school name, and photographs – should only ever be shared with people they know. Personal information is everything about yourself.
It can include:
- Full name and home address
- Insurance number
- Phone number or email address
- Age or date of birth
- Siblings or other family member
Privacy settings
Reviewing apps, site, apps, and games they use
Keep personal information private
Spend some time together looking at the privacy settings. It’s always best to assume that default settings are public and should be changed accordingly.
Some content and sites can be encrypted, which means they’re coded in a way that prevents the controls from knowing what the content actually is, so filters will not necessarily apply. Us
Spend some time together looking at the privacy settings. It’s always best to assume that default settings are public and should be changed accordingly.
Some content and sites can be encrypted, which means they’re coded in a way that prevents the controls from knowing what the content actually is, so filters will not necessarily apply. Use a Virtual Private Network (VPN). A VPN can anonymize your browsing activity, making it less likely that people are able to track you from website to website. If you’re concerned about advertising or malicious attackers, a VPN can help. They also don’t usually restrict purchases through apps or the use of certain programmes that are already on the device. You’ll need to consider setting your device controls and platform (such as Chrome or Netflix) controls too.
Reviewing apps, site, apps, and games they use
Reviewing apps, site, apps, and games they use
Reviewing apps, site, apps, and games they use
Although children-friendly apps can make using the internet a more accessible, safer and enjoyable experience, the thousands of apps available for different types of people mean it’s important to make sure children use appropriate ones. You will probably use social networks yourself, but you might want to know about new ones that your chi
Although children-friendly apps can make using the internet a more accessible, safer and enjoyable experience, the thousands of apps available for different types of people mean it’s important to make sure children use appropriate ones. You will probably use social networks yourself, but you might want to know about new ones that your child is using or wants to use. Use them yourself and set up your own account so you can experience what your child might see. There are also many child-friendly social networks they could use while they get ready for the likes of Snapchat and Instagram.
Know who their friends are
Encourage children to talk to someone
Reviewing apps, site, apps, and games they use
Check in frequently with your kids about whom they're interacting with, whether they've ever been contacted by a stranger, and if they ever "prune" their contact lists by deleting or blocking acquaintances. Talk to them about being cautious about what they share with people online. Remind them that even though people they’ve met online might feel like friends they may not be who they say they are.
Encourage children to talk to someone
Encourage children to talk to someone
Encourage children to talk to someone
It’s inevitable that as your child gets older, you won’t be as physically present in every aspect of their life. But you are still needed for emotional support. If you want a window into what’s going on in their day, the key is to keep up listening.
If something makes your child worried or uncomfortable online their best course of action
It’s inevitable that as your child gets older, you won’t be as physically present in every aspect of their life. But you are still needed for emotional support. If you want a window into what’s going on in their day, the key is to keep up listening.
If something makes your child worried or uncomfortable online their best course of action is always to talk to an adult they trust. You can also direct them to organisations such as child-line.
Negotiating the gaming world
Encourage children to talk to someone
Encourage children to talk to someone
In some games like Minecraft or Roblox people deliberately try to intimidate other players. In multi-player games where gamers talk to one another – you might find abusive language, harassment and there have been instances of grooming. It’s vital therefore that your child knows how to report abuse and talks to you if something is causing them concern.