Tag: online safety

Facebook not safe for kids, says charity poll

  • Poll shows majority of adults believe Facebook is failing in its duty of care to protect children
  •  Three out of four don’t think Facebook is safe for children
  • NSPCC urges Facebook to rethink encryption plans or face tough sanctions from new regulator

The NSPCC has slammed Facebook’s encryption plans after three out of four adults polled in Scotland said they didn’t think the site was safe for children.

Out of 180 adults in Scotland, just one in five (22%) said the tech giant took the safety of children using the site seriously and two thirds (66%) believed the platform was failing in its duty of care to protect children.

The results for Scotland were similar to those of the whole Great Britain sample, which consisted of 2,070 adults.

The claims came in an NSPCC/ Savanta ComRes poll following the tech giant’s announcement that they will encrypt messages on Facebook and Instagram.

The charity previously revealed that one in 25 young people (11 to 17 year olds) who used Facebook or Facebook Messenger had sent, received or been asked to send sexual content to an adult.

It is now warning the tech giant not to create hiding places for abusers by pressing ahead with encryption plans that don’t have strong safeguards in place.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who admitted that his plans would protect the “privacy of people doing bad things”, has failed to give any clear answers in how he intends to stop groomers preying on children on his site.

The NSPCC is calling for supporters to sign an open letter to Facebook demanding they put children first as part of its Wild West Web campaign.

Andy Burrows, NSPCC head of child safety online policy, said: “Facebook has been called out for its abject failure to make their platforms safe, yet their encryption plans will give offenders a free pass to abuse children while they look the other way.

“This cavalier approach risks creating a one stop grooming shop if Facebook don’t include strong safeguards that protect children in their encryption plan.

“Boris Johnson must make it clear that upcoming regulation will force Facebook to guarantee children’s safety on its messaging services or be hit hard in the pocket for failing in its duty of care.”

The NSPCC is calling for:

  • No end-to-end encryption for messages going to or coming from children’s accounts on Facebook apps
  • Adults accounts not to be encrypted until and unless Facebook has solutions to ensure child abuse can be detected and that children safety won’t be compromised
  • The Government to push ahead with introducing an independent Duty of Care regulator to keep children safe online
  • The Government to warn Facebook that encryption breaches the incoming Duty of Care and pressing ahead will mean tough consequences

Parents more concerned about their children online

More parents than ever feel children’s online use now carries more risks than benefits, according to Ofcom’s latest research into children’s media and online lives.

Ofcom’s Children’s Media Use and Attitudes report 2019 is based on around 3,500 interviews with children and parents. Children’s Media Lives is a qualitative report looking at how children aged eight to 18 think about and use digital media.

Parents and carers are becoming more likely to trust their children with greater digital independence at a younger age. But far fewer believe the benefits of their child being online outweigh the risks than five years ago. And around two million parents now feel the internet does their children more harm than good.

This comes as children are now more likely to see hateful content online. Half of 12-15s who go online had seen hateful content in the last year, up from a third in 2016.

Parents are increasingly concerned about their child seeing something online which might encourage them to harm themselves. Similarly, two gaming-related problems are increasingly concerning parents: the pressure on their child to make in-game purchases of things like ‘loot boxes’, a virtual item containing rewards; and the possibility of their child being bullied via online games.

However, parents are now more likely than in 2018 to speak to their children about staying safe online, and are nearly twice as likely to go online themselves for support and information about keeping their children safe.

Influencers, online activism and girl gamers

Looking at what today’s children are doing online, Ofcom uncovered three big trends over the past year.

18% of 12-15 year olds use social media to support causes and organisations by sharing or commenting on posts, up from 12% in 2018.

  • The ‘Greta effect’. There is increased online social activism among children. Almost a fifth of 12-15s use social media to express support for causes and organisations by sharing or commenting on posts. One in 10 signed petitions on social media.
  • Rise of the ‘vlogger next door’. While high-profile YouTube stars remain popular, children are now increasingly drawn to so-called ‘micro’ or ‘nano’ influencers. These often have fewer followers, but might be local to a child’s area or share a niche interest.
  • Girl gamers on the increase. Almost half of girls aged five to 15 now play games online – up from 39% in 2018. The proportion of boy gamers is unchanged at 71%, but boys spend twice as long playing online each week as girls.

The proportion of 12-15 year olds who have a social media profile on Facebook (69%), Snapchat (68%), Instagram (66%), WhatsApp (62%), YouTube (47%), Pinterest (13%), TikTok (13%) and Twitch (5%).

Social Media use more fragmented

Older children are using a wider range of social media platforms than ever before. WhatsApp in particular has grown in popularity among 12-15 year-olds since last year, despite having a minimum age limit of 16.

WhatsApp is now used by almost two thirds of older children – up from 43% in 2018. For the first time, it rivals Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram as one of the top social media platforms for older children.

Newer platforms are also becoming more popular. Around one in seven older children use TikTok, which enables users to create and upload lip-sync, comedy and talent videos, while one in 20 older children uses Twitch, a live streaming platform for gamers.

Children’s viewing habits are changing radically too. Almost twice as many children watch streaming content than they did five years ago.

In 2019, fewer children watched traditional broadcast TV than streaming content, with a quarter not watching it at all.

But YouTube is as popular as ever, remaining children’s firm favourite for video ahead of Netflix, Amazon Prime, the BBC and ITV.

The age of digital independence

50% of 10 year-olds own a smartphone in 2019, up from 30% in 2015.

When it comes to going online, children are most likely to use a tablet but mobiles are becoming increasingly popular and children are now as likely to use a mobile as they are a laptop.

This move to mobile is being driven by older children, for whom 10 is becoming the age of digital independence. Between age nine and 10, the proportion of children who own a smartphone doubles to 50% – giving them greater digital freedom as they prepare to move to secondary school. By the time they are 15, almost all children have one.

“Today’s children have never known life without the internet, but two million parents now feel the internet causes them more harm than good, said Yih-Choung Teh, Ofcom’s Strategy and Research Group Director.

“So it’s encouraging that parents, carers and teachers are now having more conversations than ever before with children about online safety. Education and stronger regulation will also help children to embrace their digital independence, while protecting them from the risks”.

children-media-use-attitudes-2019-report

ATM scams: Christmas crime

FESTIVE SHOPPERS in Edinburgh are being warned against the latest ATM scams hitting high streets across Scotland this Christmas and New Year’s.

The Scottish Business Resilience Centre (SBRC) has issued a call for extra vigilance when withdrawing cash over one of the busiest periods of the year for shopping. Continue reading ATM scams: Christmas crime

Top security tips to protect yourself against fraud this Christmas

Black Friday marked the start of the festive season, not just for us, but for criminals too. We will all be frantically seeking out some Christmas bargains both on the high street and online.  It’s easy to get carried away with the festive cheer but remember the old adage ‘If something looks too good to be true then generally it is.’  

If you’re concerned about fraud, Head of Information Security at Atom bank, Jon Holden, has provided some useful tips to keep you protected and to ensure you don’t put yourself in danger:

  1. Be wise and choose where you shop carefully

“When buying online, look for the padlock or lock icon located in the web browser. Check out the feedback section for buyer reviews and ask if the seller has a returns policy. Do they have a physical address or are they only contactable via phone or email – this may be a red flag!

“Use a credit card when making a big money purchase, as the majority of card companies have online insurance from their customers. Be mindful that some products may be counterfeit – top end designer goods are rarely discounted so you may be buying counterfeit goods.”

  1. Don’t click on links in unsolicited emails or share too much information

“Fraudsters send out phishing emails which may appear to be from a legitimate online company from which you have previously made a purchase, requesting that you are required to update your payment card details.

Check the URL in your web browser. Fraudsters change an address ever so slightly in the hope that you won’t notice that it isn’t the genuine website e.g. www.pay.pa1.com.

“If you are in any doubt contact the company direct i.e. not via the link. Don’t share too much information and only complete what is required. If you feel uncomfortable with the information you’re being asked for then don’t share it.”

  1. Update your apps, browsers,  PCs, phones, iPads, tablets…

“Regularly check and install the latest software and app updates on your devices. They contain important security updates that can protect you against malware and fraud.”

  1. Use strong passwords and switch on multi-factor authentication

“It might seem obvious, but many people still use simple and straightforward passwords that are easily guessed by fraudsters. Hackers usually work through lists of common passwords searching for the right combination, and once they’ve guessed your log in details for one account, they could use your credentials to access multiple websites.

“Use unique passwords for each service you use. Make sure they don’t include names or key dates like your birthday as this could put you at risk. Make it hard to guess by using upper and lower-case letters, special characters and numbers, but not so hard that you won’t remember and have to write it down. Also switch on multi-factor authentication, this will keep you extra protected as it will ask for two or more pieces of evidence to gain access to your account.”

  1. If you’re shopping online on a public/shared computer – don’t click on ‘remember me’ 

“When using a public/shared computer, make sure you log out before leaving the machine and don’t click on ‘remember me’ as that could allow the next user to log in to your account.”

“Selecting the ‘remember my card details’ option is very convenient for future purchases, but means you’re putting a lot of trust in the company behind the website. If they don’t store your details, they can’t lose your details to hackers!”

Online safety campaigner receives NSPCC honorary member of council award

Ruth Moss, a research nurse from Edinburgh, has been recognised as an ‘Honorary Member of Council’ at the NSPCC annual council meeting after years of hard work campaigning for tighter regulations on online safety for children. Continue reading Online safety campaigner receives NSPCC honorary member of council award