A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Being a parent can be terrifying. You spend your days trying to protect tiny humans when every instinct in their body is telling them to rebel against your good advice. Toddlers have a meltdown when forced to hold hands while crossing the road and teenagers sulk when you tell them they cannot have a phone or [...]
Cybersecurity experts have recommended that the government increase the digital age of consent from 13 to 16 because of safety risks for children. They were “unequivocally” opposed to the Irish government’s position where children can sign legal agreements with online service providers at 13 and have their personal information sold on to third parties. An [...]
New research by Amnesty International has revealed the alarming impact that abuse and harassment on social media are having on women in Australia, with women reporting stress, anxiety, or panic attacks as a result of these harmful online experiences. The organisation commissioned an Ipsos MORI online poll which looked at the experiences of 502 women [...]
As more than 175,000 children go online for the first time every day – a new child every half second – UNICEF, the UN Children’s Agency, warned today that digital access means they are exposed not only to a wealth of benefits and opportunities, but also to a host of risks and harms. These risks [...]
Angela Reynolds's daughter Ashley was a high school freshman in 2009 when a stranger calling himself "Captain Obvious," with a profile that made it look like he was a teenager, messaged her through social media. He claimed to to have nude pictures of her. Ashley ignored him at first, but he became more insistent, threatening [...]
For many parents the world of cyberbullying is unchartered territory - something they’ve never dealt with firsthand and may find difficult to address with their child. To mark Stand Up To Bullying Day on Wednesday 21 June, The Diana Award, a charity set up in the memory of Diana, is calling for “cyber lessons” in [...]
For all the benefits to mental health a digital world can bring, such as a sense of belonging and information and support for those with problems, there are also myriad dangers associated with online activity. In the very worst cases, people have live-streamed their suicide and had people cheer them on in the comments section. [...]
It’s difficult for parents to know if their teen is a victim of cyberbullying. Many teens choose not to tell, worried their device will be taken away. Instead, your daughter might complain of “drama at school.” Or maybe your son feels embarrassed or ashamed. Bullying makes most people feel weak and powerless. According to Bark, [...]
Not everything online is evil, nor does danger lurk behind every new app that comes to market. But keeping up with your teens' and preteens' online activities is much like trying to nail jelly to the barn door - frustrating, futile and something bound to make you feel inept. Keep in mind that no app poses [...]
Parents of teens know how tricky it is to keep their kids physically safe while balancing their need for greater independence, but when it comes to keeping them safe online, it can be even trickier. Horror stories of social media harassment and exposure to explicit content leading to teen suicide or even murder abound. Yet [...]
