Kids want advice on online privacy

Many British children need advice on how to keep their personal information private when they are online, according to communications watchdog Ofcom.

In a poll of 11 to 16 year olds, more than half (54 per cent) said that they believed young people needed more information about how to keep secure when surfing the web.

More than a quarter (28 per cent) said they needed tips on how to keep security information such as passwords and PIN numbers secure.

Nearly a quarter (22 per cent) needed advice on how to deal with inappropriate content, while 20 per cent of the children needed help on how to cope with cyberbullying.

However, the majority of parents and carers (79 per cent) felt that they knew enough to keep their kids safe. Yet this left over one in 10 who needed help and support.

IT PRO reported this week that adults weren't possibly the best people to give advice about security, with two surveys revealing that many adults used the same password for every site they visited.