Approximately one in ten children will experience sexual victimization before turning 18, and most know the offender. The risk is even higher in Indigenous communities.
Protecting our children starts with knowledge and awareness. Research shows that children who understand personal safety and boundaries are less likely to be targeted.
Recent research has taught us that offenders are less likely to target children who present a risk of “telling”. What this means is that by empowering children with knowledge we can help reduce their risk of victimization.
Tips on how to get started:
- Stay involved with your child’s technology use
- Talk openly about their online experiences
- Help them recognize “wrong kind of attention”
- While online, avoid location sharing
- Use safe screen names if they have to use a name
- Teach them to avoid making personal posts or posts about personal information
- Assess if your child is ready for online activity
- Keep personal information and posts private
- Assess if your child is ready for online activity
For additional ideas on how to keep your child safe, click here.
Use these three steps to help children be safe online
STOP – speaking with the predator immediately
BLOCK – the user but do not delete the messages
TALK – to a parent or trusted adult immediately
We all need to learn about online sexual abuse and the behaviours and situations that present risks to our children and youth.
Most importantly, we need to teach our children that it is okay to say “no” to something or someone who makes them feel confused or uncomfortable.
To learn more about online child sexual abuse and to learn how to identify the signs, go to the Centre for Child Protection website.