A talk by ConnectSafely.org co-director on putting Internet risks into perspective, based on research released in fall 2011

1. Putting Risks into
Perspective: What the
data show
Larry Magid
Co-director
ConnectSafely.org
Founder
SafeKids.com
larry@ConnectSafely.org

2. There are problems, but …
•Online predator risk is extremely low
•Only 2% of kids sent a “sext”
•85% of US kids have not been harassed online in last 12
month
•Across Europe, 6% of 9 to 16-year-old internet users have
been bullied online. 3% confess to having bullied others.*
•81% of US teens use privacy controls
•62% friends only
•19% friends of friends
Source: Teens, Kindness and Cruelty on Social Network Sites
How American teens navigate the new world of "digital citizenship
Pew Internet & American Life Project, November 2011
* EU Kids Online, Sept 2011

3. Teens & privacy
In Europe:
In U.S.
• 29% of 9-12 year olds and 27 per cent of
• 62% of teens who have a social media
13-16 year olds have their profile
profile say the profile they use most
“public”
often is set to be private so that only
their friends can see the content they • 20% of SNS users communicate online
post. with people unconnected to their daily
lives, including 20% of 9-12 year olds. +
• 19% say their profile is partially private
so that friends of friends or their • 20% of children whose profile is public
networks can see some version of their display their address and/or phone
profile. number, twice as many as for those with
private profiles.+
• 17% say their profile is set to public so
that everyone can see it • 17% of 9-12 year olds and 33% of 13-16
year olds have more than 100 contacts
on their SNS profile.+
Source: Teens, Kindness and Cruelty on Social Network Sites
How American teens navigate the new world of "digital citizenship
Pew Internet & American Life Project, November 2011
• EU Kids Online, Sept 2011
• + Percentages are approximate

4. Children who bully others more
likely to be bullied
47% of kids
who bully
offline are
bullied
themselves 40% of kids
who bully
others online
Only 4% of kids are bullied
who don’t themselves
bully others
online are
bullied
themselves
Whether a child is victim of bullying , by whether the child
bullies others
Source: EU Kids Online, Sept. 2011

5. Most kids don’t experience
cruelty online
Source: Teens, Kindness and Cruelty on Social Network Sites
How American teens navigate the new world of "digital citizenship
Pew Internet & American Life Project, November 2011

6. We are not raising a generation
of monsters
• Most kids don’t bully
• Most kids (69%) say people their age are
mostly kind to each other on social
networking sites
• 20% have been bullied in past year
• 12% have been bullied in person
• 15% have been victims of “online
meanness.”
Source: Teens, Kindness and Cruelty on Social Network Sites
How American teens navigate the new world of "digital citizenship
Pew Internet & American Life Project, November 2011

7. Social norms approach
• People emulate how they think their peers
behave
• If people think their friends don’t smoke,
they’re less likely to smoke.
• Same is true with over-eating, excessive
alcohol use and other negative behaviors,
including bullying*
*Assessing Bullying in New Jersey Secondary Schools: Applying the Social
Norms Model to Adolescent Violence: Craig, Perkins 2008