Advice for keeping children safe online published

With many children using the internet for education and entertainment during school closures, there are increased risks of exposure to online harms such as cyberbullying and disinformation.

To combat this, the government has published guidance to keep children safe online. It sets out a four-point plan and recommends reviewing security and safety settings, checking facts and guarding against disinformation, being vigilant against fraud and scams, and managing the amount of time spent online.

It follows a virtual roundtable by the Minister for Digital and Culture, Caroline Dinenage, the Security Minister, James Brokenshire, and child safety organisations to assess the impact of coronavirus on child online safety.

Minister for Digital and Culture Caroline Dinenage said: "Staying at home in order to protect the NHS and save lives means we are spending more time online. This means we must all be extra vigilant, follow good security practice and make sure our children are safe too. It’s also important that we check the facts behind what we read and remember to take regular breaks.

"We are completely committed to making the UK the safest place to be online, and that’s why we have brought together a wealth of practical advice which I urge parents to use and share with their children."

The guidance points to a number of existing resources from organisations such as Full Fact for checking claims about COVID-19, safety advice from the National Crime Agency, Internet Matters, the UK Safer Internet Centre and Childline, as well as tools for managing family screen time, such as Apple’s Screen Time feature and Google’s Family Link.

The guidance can be found at: www.gov.uk/guidance/covid-19-staying-safe-online