Risk Culture Influences in Internet Safety and Security

The predominant risk culture within the UK surrounding protecting children from online predators has a strong influence on the type of awareness raising activities being promoted for children. As reflected in the terminology in the field, e-safety has moved through Internet Safety to be commonly referred to in child protection circles as online safeguarding. Whether this change in terminology benefits the children is debateable. This paper reports findings from a groundbreaking project involving schools in South West England, which explored young people’s perceptions of online risk. It was determined that while their knowledge was sound, there is a need to re-frame the current Internet Safety initiatives to provide more emphasis on encouraging changing behaviour.