Grooming

Grooming: How to react

What do you see when you see a message from an online predator? Can children recognise it for what it is if or when they see it? And how should they react? Get to know some common techniques online groomers employ and discuss the warning signs and appropriate reactions with your child. Use this article as a tool for prevention and work together with your child to ensure they have safe experiences online.

How an online predator contacts your child

Social media, chat rooms, instant messaging, and online games: all of these offer unique opportunities for your kids. They can talk to their friends and have fun sharing videos and playing games. At the same time, though, they make it very easy for anyone to contact your child, be it through a message, a comment on a video, or a game.

Is my child being groomed? And what to do next

It is a horrible situation to find yourself in as a parent, finding out that your child has been attacked by an online predator, manipulated, and taken advantage of. Most predators try their hardest not to be found out, and they manage to do so for quite a long time. So, finding out that your child might be involved with someone like that is a challenge on its own. We sat down with child psychologist Jarmila Tomkova to talk about early signs, what is going on in the child’s mind and what we can do to prevent grooming and help them in such situations.

Friendly to scary: The progression of online predatory behaviour

For children nowadays, the internet is a place where they can relax, play games, educate themselves and meet new friends. Unfortunately, the online space can also become a danger zone when seemingly friendly individuals target children with malicious intent – online predators are a real threat. How do you recognise when the person behind the other screen wants to harm your child?

Hey PUG! – Strangers

An entertainer, or a new bully. What are deepfakes and how to talk about them with kids?

Imagine yourself as a timid kid feeling intimidated by your peers. One day, a group of children laugh at you, and you don’t fully understand why. Then they show you a video in which your face has been put onto the main character's body in the movie Forest Gump. The video is, of course, fake – more specifically, it is a deepfake. What are deepfakes, and how do they figure in children’s lives?