Every year the British Council engages directly with up to two million children globally, and seven million indirectly through teaching, programmes, and projects. The organisation is committed to keeping children safe and protecting them from all forms of harm and abuse.
The five golden rules are:
- Ask your child to show you the sites they use. Find out how to set the safety features and how to report any issues directly to the site.
- Ask your child to set their social media profile settings to 'private' to help protect photos, personal information or even location in the real world ending up in the wrong hands.
- Ask your children who their online friends are. Help your children understand that people can create fake identities online and lie about who they are. They should only give out personal information and be friends with people they know and trust in real world.
- Ask your child to only share photos that they wouldn't mind showing you first.
- Ask your child to tell you if they're worried about something online. Talk to your child about the internet, their favourite sites and the risks they may encounter. They are more likely to turn to you if they get into situations online where they don't feel comfortable.