E-Safety

46% of parents agree with the statement: “My child knows more about the internet than I do”, Ofcom. 

The internet is an amazing resource and integral to our everyday lives. At Stowupland we teach students explicitly about internet safety through ICT at KS3 and in our PSHE curriculum. However many of the interactions happen outside of school. Here are some useful tips and resources to help support your child.

Here are some conversation starters to help your family discuss internet safety issues and establish some ground rules together:

• What sites does your child like using and what do they enjoy doing online?

• How does your child stay safe online?  What tips do they have for you?

• What is it ok, or not ok to share online?

• What privacy settings do they use and how do they report content that makes them feel uncomfortable?

• Do they know the people they are talking to? Have they met them in person?

Family Internet Agreement

Norfolk Police have created a helpful agreement that parents/carers can use with their children to establish the ground rules of using the internet.  To view the agreement, click here.

Thinkuknow is an excellent website for giving straight forward and up to date advice to help your children get the most out of the Internet whilst staying safe.  How to keep your child safe online

• Parental controls

• I am worried about how my child uses the Internet

• I am worried about my child's online relationships and sensitive issues

• Advice for children with additional needs

• How to report an incident and/or get additional help

The internet offers many monitoring apps and websites so parents can monitor screen time and look at what their child is viewing and how often. They can also monitor web searches and track where they are. Some are free, others have a cost involved.  This PC magazine’s recommendations for 2023 here.

!!! LATEST NEWS !!!

There is a new concerning App OME.TV
This is where students can have live online face to face streaming with a complete stranger.
OME.TV

 

Please also be aware of these Apps on your child’s phone

Omegle - is one of the more popular video chat sites available online. It pairs random users identified as 'You' and 'Stranger' to chat online via text, videos or both.

Concerns:

• No account sign up required – users can join a chat immediately and are automatically paired with a complete stranger.
• No age verification – it says users must be 13+ with ‘parental permission and supervision’ but does not check this at any point.
• No effective moderation – it claims to use ‘AI and human moderators’, but there is little to no evidence or clarity that this is implemented.
• No reporting or blocking features – users are unable to report inappropriate behaviour, and offending users can continue to use Omegle freely

More information on OMEGLE

WIZZ - basically like Tinder with an age restriction 12+being advertised on TikTok as a young person's Tinder. 

The App store description is a way of making new friends. There is speculation that this is being used for blackmail purposes as it has access to your camera.

 

Likee - It is like a low grade TikTok.

Concerns:

• Likee automatically displays the user’s location with every post
• Accounts can’t be made private
• Users can filter a search by gender
• There is no age verification process
• Mature and risky content abounds
• In-app parental controls are ineffectual
• Commenting and private messaging, allowing predators and paedophiles - often adults posing as children - to target kids with salacious comments and vile “challenges.”

Mobile phone providers now provide free content filtering for mobile phones.

If your child has a mobile phone that can access the internet, you can contact them for more help and advice on keeping them safe and if content filtering is already in place or needs to be activated.

More general information can be found here: iphone parental controls and android parental controls

Please also see attached guidance on Mobile Phones in Schools by the Department for Education.

O2 - Call Customer Services on 4445 from your 02 mobile or 0844 809 0222 from a landline or other phone. To activate 'Parental Control' dial 61818 or visit their page for advice at 02 Staying Safe on your Device.

Vodafone - call customer services on 191 from a Vodafone mobile or 08700 700191 from another phone for Pay Monthly customers or on 08700 776655 for Pay as you Go.

Orange, T-Mobile & EE - call customer services on 150 from your Orange, T-Mobile or EE mobile phone. Call 07973 100 150 from another phone for Orange Pay Monthly customers, 07973 100 450 for Orange Pay as you Go customers, 07953 966 150 for T-Mobile customers and 07953 966 250 for EE customers.

3 - Call 0800 358 8460

Tesco Mobile - Call the customer care team on 4455 from your Tesco mobile or 0845 301 4455 from another phone. For more information visit the Child Safety and Parental Controls web page or complete their Contact Us form.