TikTok has commissioned new research to better understand how Australian parents are tackling conversations about online safety and wellbeing with their teens (13 -17 year olds).
The research revealed that while the safety of teens online is a concern to Aussie parents and guardians, only 41% of them proactively talk with their teens about it when their teen opens a social media account, and over a quarter (28%) believe it’s the responsibility of someone else.
When it comes to parents’ top five concerns, cyber bullying (54%) was the number one concern among parents across the country, followed by exposure to dangerous or explicit content (50%), connecting with strangers (49%), data security / privacy (41%) and screen time (37%).
While parents acknowledge the potential issues associated with being online, many are not completely confident (39%) discussing them with their children, rather waiting for a trigger such as them coming to them with a problem (56%), a change in their mood or habits (57%), seeing something in the news, or information coming from another source such as a friend or social media (57%).
Other Key Findings:
• Only 29% of parents use family pairing/parenting tools to support their teens’ online wellbeing, with Dads leading the charge over Mums (32% compared to 25%).
• 5% of parents said they were not very, or not at all, confident to talk to their children aged 13-17 about their social media usage and need more guidance. An additional 34% said they needed some guidance.
• One in three parents (33%) have their child’s phone passcode.
• Over a quarter (27%) ask their child to show their profile and social media feed
• 25% parents take their child’s phone or devices away at certain times of the day
• Parents that are savvy social media users themselves, are more confident talking to their teens about social media use, with nearly all (97%) of parents who are TikTok users very or fairly confident in talking to their teens about the topic
To help empower parents and give them a greater level of confidence in this area, TikTok has launched a minor safety campaign and teamed up with ySafe, Australia’s leading provider of cyber safety education, to encourage more in-person conversations that support a positive digital experience.
TikTok has also launched an awareness campaign about how to use Family Pairing, which includes in-app educational content, updating the Guardian’s Guide and a national media campaign.