eSafety finds families guide children online from as young as three
Nearly all children aged three to 10 have already gone online, according to new eSafety research, and many parents start safety talks long before a first smartphone or social media account.
The report Growing Up Online: parenting young children in the digital age found 97% of children aged three to 10 had been online outside childcare, preschool or school. Another 94% had used the internet in the previous four weeks.
Just under nine in 10 parents had talked with a child aged three to 10 about online safety. Around half only allowed internet access when a parent supervised.
According to eSafety, 93% of parents of 10 to 17-year-olds discuss online safety, 92% set rules and 84% give regular guidance. Those figures came from the second report, Balancing risk and reward: Parenting in the digital world.
ESafety made both reports available at eSafety.gov.au. The site also offers free live webinars, practical guides and conversation starters for families.
Growing Up Online findings
Julie Inman Grant, the eSafety Commissioner, said the findings should encourage parents, but she warned that digital parenting changes as children grow and as online risks shift.
Inman Grant said, “The conversations we have with a four-year-old won’t be the same as the conversations we have with a 14-year-old. Digital parenting isn’t a single conversation or a set-and-forget decision.”
However, the research also showed weaker awareness of newer risks. Among parents of children aged three to 10, about one in three had discussed how algorithms shape content or what to do if sexual images appear online.
Among parents of 10 to 17-year-olds, 26% had discussed algorithms, 11% had talked about how generative AI can be used or misused, and 8% had covered sexual extortion.
Nearly three-quarters of parents of younger children said supporting online safety can be challenging. The same report found many parents use the internet to help manage daily parenting demands.
Inman Grant said, “Parents are already playing a vital role in helping their children build safe and healthy digital habits through age-appropriate guidance, supervision and conversations that grow with their children.”
