Child safety & online safety: frequently asked questions

Online child safety means protecting kids from scams, predators and grooming, cyberbullying, and privacy risks while they use the internet. It's a mix of parental controls, open conversation, and knowing the warning signs of each threat. See the threats families face online.

Start with the 10-minute family safety checklist: set up parental controls, secure your home network, agree on a screen-time plan, and talk through simple rules kids can remember, like never sharing passwords or photos with people they only know online.

Screenshot the evidence before anything gets deleted, use the platform's block and report tools, and stay calm when your child tells you. Full response steps are in our cyberbullying guide.

Grooming usually starts in a public space like game chat or comments, then moves to a private app where messages disappear and parents lose visibility. See the full 6-stage pattern in predators & grooming.

Cyberbullying is repeated harassment, exclusion, or humiliation, usually among peers who know each other. Sextortion is a financial or coercive crime where someone threatens to share an explicit image unless paid or given more images. Both need fast, calm reporting; see our sextortion guide if you suspect it.

Not automatically. Some apps restrict romantic or open-ended chat for accounts registered as under 18, but many don't verify age closely. Check the app's settings yourself and talk with your child about why an AI chatbot isn't a substitute for a real friend. More in our AI risks guide.

Free tools like Google Family Link, Apple Screen Time, and Microsoft Family Safety cover the basics well: screen limits, content filters, and purchase approvals. See our full tools directory for the complete list, including paid alternatives. Paid tools like Bark or Aura add AI-flagged alerts for grooming or self-harm language across many apps at once. Which one is worth it depends on your child's age and how many platforms they use; see the feature comparison table on our tools page.

Change that account's password immediately from a different, trusted device, then turn on two-factor authentication. Check your home router for unfamiliar connected devices, since a compromised account sometimes points to a wider network problem. Full steps are in our home network guide.

Yes. FamilyShield Online is a free educational resource and doesn't receive compensation from any software or service mentioned on this site.

Kids Corner is built for ages 7 to 12: simple language, five golden rules, and gentle scenario missions. Teen Zone is written directly for teens, covering sextortion, deepfake nudes, and online relationship red flags in plain, non-babied language, with ways to get help that don't require going through a parent first. Neither section shows ads or collects data.

It depends on what's happening. Our resources & reporting page lists the right contact for scams, exploitation, and cyberbullying across all 8 regions we cover (US, Canada, UK, Ireland, EU, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa), with the emergency numbers at the top.