Social media use over the holidays: talking to your teen or child

Keeping communication can help support your young person in navigating potential risks like viewing inappropriate content or becoming a victim of scams or abuse.

Supporting your child’s safety online means:

• keeping on top of the privacy settings and password access of the devices your child is using

• having age-appropriate conversations about what porn is and why it is not suitable for children, including making sure your child knows to speak to you if they see anything inappropriate online (read our blog post on how pornography changes the brain, and why teens need to know about this here)
• staying educated on emerging risks, such as ‘sextortion’, a form of online online blackmail (the ACCCE has created a new sextortion help page to help identify this crime and how to report it)

Young people going through puberty and older teens often use the internet and social media as a tool to experiment with their identity and cultivate a sense of self. It can be exciting to watch your child’s personality and interests emerge; keeping open communication that supports them in developing digital literacy means they are more likely to have a positive, safe experience online.

Looking for a little more support in navigating cybersafety? Shortly after the upcoming the 2023 Safer Internet Day on February 7, we’re going to be hosting a special version of our online webinar, ‘Talk to me first’ focused on how to speak to your child about porn. We’ll be launching the details early next year.