Detroit Named 4th Worst City in the U.S for Child Cyberbullying!
Research from ExpressVPN reveals how adults are monitoring their children’s online usage and the perils of young children on social media.
Detroit has one of the worst online bullying problems in the U.S, according to a new survey from ExpressVPN. The consumer privacy and security company found that 30% of children from the metropolis said they had been bullied online.
With children’s internet usage at an all-time high,
ExpressVPN’s study polled 2,000 children aged four to 13 in the US and UK who have access to the internet. It studied over 2,000 adults that were parents, or guardians, to understand the extent of a child’s risk when using online services.
The survey found that 41% of children in Detroit experienced others being rude to children, or swearing at them online, and 37% had been asked to buy something.
The research uncovered that most parents in Detroit
are concerned about their children’s online safety, with 52% of adult respondents citing fears of people asking for personal information cyberstalking and seeing offensive images or videos (44%).
Despite 95% of U.S parents admitting that they monitor their children’s activity online regularly, when asked about what they experience on the internet, 37% of US child respondents said they encountered someone being rude or swearing online, while 30% reported seeing scary images.
Confirming parents’ fears,
26% of children admitted to being bullied online, but more worryingly, 21% of American children have had a stranger ask which school they go to, and 19% have been asked for their home address before.
The survey also found that while only about a quarter of parents say that they allow their four-to-13-year-olds to have a social media account, over half of their children admitted to using social media anyway.
“It’s undeniably alarming how many children are experiencing bullying, inappropriate content, and harassment online. Parents often do everything they can to protect their children from this. Still, it’s not as simple as putting parental controls on their devices, and banning technology altogether isn’t a reasonable option,” commented Lauren Hendry Parsons, Privacy Advocate at ExpressVPN.
“Children today are digital natives. They are growing up around technology and using it well as a critical tool for life and learning in today’s society. As a result, kids can be more tech-savvy than their parents, evading parental controls on their devices or finding other ways to access digital services their friends are also using.
“For parents in 2023, the number one tool in your protection arsenal is education, together with a strong foundation of trust. It’s education on how they can be a responsible digital citizen, why it’s important to be open and honest about what they see or experience online, and how they can use the internet safely.”
Hendry Parsons also said, “But this isn’t always an easy conversation to have, especially in teenage years, so recruit the power of a cool aunt or uncle to help have these conversations, too. If your child can be empowered with age-appropriate knowledge about digital risks from multiple sources, they will become more comfortable with having open conversations about it and better equipped to deal with situations that arise”.
ExpressVPN is committed to helping parents protect their children online. It offers free resources and tips to help parents keep their children safe on social media, including a free Udemy course on online privacy and security essentials.
For more information on this survey, please visit ExpressVPN’s blog post or their website for further safety resources.
Methodology
The survey was carried out by Censuswide across the UK and the US in December 2022, with a total of 4000 respondents. In each country, 1000 parents of children aged four-13, and 1000 children between the ages of four-13 were surveyed.
About ExpressVPN
Since 2009, ExpressVPN has empowered millions of users to take control of their internet experience. The company’s award-winning consumer VPN service is backed by its open-source VPN protocol, Lightway, delivering user privacy in just a few clicks. ExpressVPN’s ‘Keys’ password manager and Aircove router make digital privacy and security easy and accessible for all. ExpressVPN’s products have been extensively vetted by third-party experts, including PwC, Cure53, KPMG and others.
ExpressVPN has been part of Kape Technologies (LSE:KAPE) since 2021. To learn more about ExpressVPN’s industry-leading privacy and security solutions, visit www.expressvpn.com.
