By Kayla DeKraker
Seventy-nine percent of children born between 2010 and 2024 play video games, and parents need to take some extra steps to keep children safe. How can we protect them from the dangers online?
Thorn, a nonprofit that works to protect kids from sexual abuse, found that “a quarter of young people report being sexually solicited on the internet in return for something of value before turning 18, including on gaming platforms.”
“Unfortunately, we see these threats occurring across most platforms. These are fundamentally social spaces; bad actors target them to connect with young people,” said Melissa Stroebel, vice president of research and insights at Thorn.
Horrifically, “an estimated 500,000 online predators active each day,” one statistic reveals. And over 50% of those exploited online are between ages 12 and 15.
The problem with gaming is that many of the most popular platforms among kids, like Roblox, Minecraft and Fortnite, have direct message capabilities.
“Despite even the best of intentions, game makers and platforms can’t produce a 100% safe environment free of adults looking to take advantage of kids. This is because chats happen so quickly and can be moved to other platforms like Snapchat or texting,” explained Titania Jordan, author of Parental Control and chief parent officer Bark Technologies.
Stroebel added, “There’s still a lot of work to be done to ensure these platforms are safe for young users.”
The Department of Homeland Security has several tips parents can share with their children to increase safety online.
“Warn them not to trust people they meet online and tell them they should tell a trusted adult if someone makes them feel nervous, scared or uncomfortable,” DHS advises.
The Department also urges parents to “talk about how they should never post personal information or inappropriate content, discuss sexting and the permanency of online data,” and “explain the warning signs that characterize online predators.”
One of the biggest warning signs? “Safe adults won’t ask them to keep secrets or disrespect their boundaries,” but predators will.
Parents can also simply tell their kids that video games aren’t an option for their family and explain why.
Related: Google Makes Safety Changes to Chromebooks to Protect Children from Graphic Content Online
One mom on Instagram, Dr. Alison Yeung, shared revealed the harmful content she was exposed to on Roblox posing as her 6-year-old son. Even though she had the most advanced parental controls in place, she noticed “how often I came across inappropriate titles, pictures, and descriptions of the games that were available,” posting screenshots of some of them.
Because of what she saw, she decided to not allow her child to play online games.
Whether you allow your child to play games or not, boundaries, education and safety measures need to be put in place. The internet can be a dangerous place, and it is our job as parents to protect our children from its harm.
Read Next: How to Hold Big Tech Accountable for Sexual Exploitation
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