What Do We Mean by “Child Online Safety”?

Abstract

There is growing concern, given the growth of the Internet and subsequent online technologies, to ensure that, while children and young people are empowered to engage with the digital world, they can do so in a safe and risk free way. The author presents a juxtaposition of the views of adult and child stakeholders in the field of online safety by exploring thinking about what we actually mean by “online safety” and how we might go about achieving this. In reviewing the growing concerns around implementing whatever is meant by “child online safety,” the author uses recent UK policy developments (2010–2015) around the theme to illustrate adult stakeholder perspectives, and recommends the need to draw policy from a stronger evidence base with a more powerful youth voice, while stressing the need to ensure children’s rights in any attempt to keep them safe online.