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Interests & Risks

Teens 13-15 years of age

At this age, teens are greatly influenced by their peers and have “pseudo-maturity” which often makes them feel that they can handle more than they are developmentally ready for. They seek acceptance and belonging while also forming their own identity through experimentation and risk taking.

Livestreaming

Livestreaming lets teens share their perspectives and creativity in real time and engage with others. However, youth need to understand they could be sharing content with more people than just their friends.

  • Screenshots of videos can be taken and the videos themselves can be screen recorded. Once saved by others, it can be easily misused to embarrass or harm teens.
  • Depending on the app, platform, or website, there may be limited privacy controls, so teens don’t always know the people watching. They can be followed and viewed by adults.
  • The perceived intimacy of livestreaming could lead teens to share too much personal information. Even if they don’t give out their real name, they could be giving away their identity or location in other ways.
  • The “likes” serve to add validation and status which can influence teen’s decisions about what to post.
  • Many livestream apps and platforms have private messaging options, which are often on by default, meaning anyone can direct message youth.
  • If teens are watching livestreams: Because it’s live, content can’t always be moderated, meaning anything can happen – from explicit language, to sexual content, to violence.
  • Become familiar with the apps, platforms, and websites your teen is streaming on and watching. Review the system’s privacy settings, parental controls (if applicable), and how to report inappropriate content and behaviour.
  • Consider if your teen is developmentally able to understand risks/consequences and safeguard themselves while using the app.
  • Help set up privacy settings. On some platforms users can set up a private account, allowing them to approve or deny followers, restrict who can view their content, and limit incoming messages to followers only. Remind your teen to limit followers to people they know offline.
  • Many times, youths livestream at night in their bedrooms when parents are asleep or unaware. It’s a good idea to turn off the Wi-Fi and consider removing devices from your teen's room before bedtime.
  • Be aware of who has access to your teen’s information. Review your teen’s friend or follower list and ask them if they know them in person.
  • Explain to teens the consequences of livestreaming. It’s already hard to erase your digital footprint as it is and even harder to take back something when they are streaming it live for everyone to see.
  • Discuss that screenshots and videos from livestreams can be used against teens to embarrass or exploit them. In some cases, screenshots of teens can be used against them to get them to do things they don’t want to. This is called sextortion, which you can learn more about at Cybertip.ca/sextortion.
  • Be emotionally available and keep the lines of communication open. It is important to remind your teen they can always come to you for help without fear of getting into trouble and reinforce it’s never too late to ask for help.

Apps

Apps are a primary way to communicate with peers. Texting, messaging, and other social media apps keep teens connected to friends and family 24/7 and provide them with instant reactions from other users in the form of likes, followers, and comments. As a parent or caregiver, it’s important to understand the purpose of apps and how your child may be negatively impacted by using them.

  • Some apps give users a sense of security that their information, images or videos are only being shared temporarily. However, there are ways for other users to save or screenshot shared information.
  • Many apps use location services when enabled on the device to identify the user’s location through GPS technology. Some apps encourage the user to “check in” or share their location, while others may share location without asking for user input each time. This feature allows other users to track your teen’s daily movements.
  • Apps can be hidden on a device. Icons can be arranged discreetly, placed into folder on a user’s device, or hidden from the home screen so they are no longer visible at a quick glance.
  • More specific risks related to gaming, chat, messaging, and social media apps can be found under the headings for these types of services below.
  • Become familiar with parental controls on phones and tablets. Some devices allow parents to limit access to specific apps, social media platforms, internet content, and features available within the device.
  • Where possible, turn off location services to prevent some apps from tracking your child’s location and making it visible to their follower or friend list.
  • Create an account for your teen rather than allowing them to use your account. The birthdate entered for an Apple ID account, for example, restricts what a user can download based on the age ratings for the apps.
  • Become familiar with popular apps your teen is asking to download. Understand their purpose, how information is shared and what information is needed to sign up.
  • Set the expectation that you will monitor your teen’s use of their phone and discuss how and when you will do this. It’s important you follow through on what you have told your teen, and as required, enforce consequences for any inappropriate behaviour/actions.
  • Work together to establish guidelines around texting, social media, and gaming (who teens can do these things with and on what apps).
  • Remind your teen that it is easy to lose control over what happens to texts, photos, and videos sent through apps and not to share information that can identify their location, school, etc.

Cameras

While cameras allow teens to be creative in how they communicate with friends and family, parents and teens need to understand they could be sharing content with more people than just their friends.

  • Some apps/services that use a device’s camera may give users a sense of security that their pictures and/or videos are only temporarily shared, but these apps/services may not be as secure as users believe. Shared pictures and/or videos can be captured and forwarded to others.
  • Content shared through a device’s camera on livestreaming services can be recorded without the teen’s knowledge.
  • Unless teens know the other person, there is no way of verifying who is on the other end. Pre-recorded content can be streamed in place of live content, making it seem like teens are speaking with someone “live.”
  • Enable controls and privacy settings on apps that limit who can see posted photos or videos. Many times, default settings in apps are on “public.” Switching a profile to “private” makes posts only available to an approved list of friends or followers.
  • Monitor your teen’s use of cameras on their devices, as well as the posting and exchanging of pictures and videos online.
  • Explain to your teen once a picture is sent, whether through an app or message, they lose control of what is done with it. Images and videos can be easily misused (e.g., the recipient may show it to friends, send or post it online) or used to manipulate the other person to engage in an unwanted activity. For steps on how to report sexual photos or videos, visit NeedHelpNow.ca.
  • Have regular conversations about who your teen is video chatting with online.
  • Teach your teen that it is illegal for people to make, possess or distribute naked or sexually explicit pictures of children under 18 years of age. Explain they need to tell a safe adult if they’re presented with this situation.
  • Explain to your teen that all youth have rights to privacy, bodily autonomy, and sexual integrity. Sharing other people’s intimate images violates these rights and is wrong.
  • Explain if they are ever threatened to make or share videos, they should stop talking to the person and let you know right away. For more information, visit cybertip.ca/sextortion.

Chat, messaging and texting

Using chat, messaging, and texting apps can be a quick way for teens to communicate directly with peers. This form of communication removes the social limits deemed normal in face-to-face interactions.  Personal boundaries can be crossed earlier and easily, creating the potential for hurtful, inappropriate, or intimate information to be shared.

  • A teen may share private information or private photos, unaware of the lasting consequences. Once private information or material is sent, control over what happens with the information or material is lost.
  • Teens may accept friend or follower requests from people they don’t know in person.
  • Some anonymous messaging apps allow teens to easily engage in conversations with strangers.
  • The history of the communication through some apps may not be saved. Some chat and messaging apps may log the conversations but allow them to be easily deleted with the swipe of a finger.
  • Teens can be easily influenced and coerced into situations where they quickly find themselves in “over their head.”
  • Check to see that your teen’s chat or messaging program is set up so that no one can begin speaking to them without their permission.
  • Know your teen’s passwords, usernames, and friends they communicate with online.
  • Monitor who your teen is contacting, and the apps or services they are using to text and message with others.
  • Ensure your teen always uses a profile and username that doesn't reflect their age, location, or interests.
  • Understand that teens can make mistakes and find themselves in a distressing situation. Have regular conversations about your role and be available to help them when things go wrong.
  • Discuss the importance of not responding to harassing, harmful, or unsolicited messages. Tell your teen to save the messages, as it’ll be helpful to include when reporting them.. Visit NeedHelpNow.ca for information about reporting to various apps and services.
  • Teach your teen how to get out of unwanted conversations. Some direct ways of getting out of uncomfortable situations include refusing to do something by saying, “I don’t want to” or discontinuing contact by not responding to messages and deleting or blocking the person as a contact. Indirect ways of ending a conversation include making excuses such as, “I have to go out with my family” or blaming parents, “My mom checks my computer randomly and would ground me.”
  • Explain the importance of establishing and respecting personal boundaries when using technology. The information, images or videos your teen has shared and that others have shared with your teen should be protected and handled with respect (i.e., not shared with others).
  • Discuss options for where they can get help when they need support, such as tellingsafe adults and visiting NeedHelpNow.ca or Cybertip.ca.

Social media

Social media keeps teens connected to their peers and allows them to share their personality. But this online world also blurs social limits and personal boundaries, allowing them to be crossed more easily, and creating the potential for hurtful, inappropriate, or intimate information to be shared. It also opens teens up to a larger, potentially public audience where their “friends” may not be the person they claim to be.

  • When creating a profile, some apps and platforms require certain fields to be completed. In most cases, there are no restrictions on what can be added to a profile, including personal information and photos/videos.
  • Teens may accept friend or follower requests from people they have not met in person. Adults looking to victimize teens can quickly turn conversations sexual.
  • Teens may be bullied or stalked by peers or other users.
  • Once a message is sent or a post is made, control over that message or post is lost. Personal information, pictures, and videos can be easily saved and/or shared with others.
  • Become familiar with popular social media apps or platforms your teen is using. Understand their purpose, how information is shared, and what information is needed to sign up.
  • Review the platform’s guidelines to learn how you can report inappropriate content.
  • Enable controls and privacy settings to limit who can see posts, photos or videos. Many times, default settings in apps are on “public.” Switching a profile to “private” makes posts only available to an approved list of people (i.e., “friends” or “followers”).
  • Tell your teen not to link their other social media accounts in their bios and to avoid adding identifying information. Bios are public — anyone can see them.
  • Know your teen’s passwords, profile names, and the friends they’re communicating with online.
  • Explain to your teen where it is appropriate for them to have privacy (e.g. confiding in close friends face-to-face, journalling in their bedroom, etc.). Reinforce that there is no privacy on the internet; the internet is a public place.
  • Explain to your youth that they have rights. There are laws that protect them from acts that violate their privacy, make them feel unsafe, subject them to unwanted or illegal sexual contact. Visit NeedHelpNow.ca for more information.
  • Discuss the important qualities of a healthy relationship (being loving, caring, respectful) and compare this with examples of unhealthy relationships (one person who is persistent, manipulative, or uses guilt tactics). Without a clear understanding of what makes a healthy relationship, teens are more likely to tolerate relationships that put them at risk.
  • Discuss that it is illegal to threaten someone online and offline. Explain that threats are often used to control the situation and get teens to comply with sexual demands. If someone threatens your teen, they need to tell a safe adult. Learn more at Cybertip.ca/sextortion.
  • Be emotionally available and keep the lines of communication open. It is important to remind your teen they can always come to you for help without fear of getting into trouble and reinforce it’s never too late to ask for help.

Online gaming

Online games provide a fun distraction for teens and are another way to connect with friends. They can be played through a console or downloaded as an app for mobile devices. Many offer chat or multi-player functions that can expose teens to other users they don’t know.

  • Many online games have a chat component where users can talk to people they do not know in person. Teens can easily be exposed to inappropriate conversations or redirected to inappropriate content on other sites through the chat. In many cases, records of these chats may not saved.
  • Teens can be asked to move to a different platform with fewer safety restrictions to message or video chat.
  • Some mobile gaming apps use the device’s GPS during gameplay, allowing the location of the user to be identified by other users.
  • For consoles, computers, and mobile devices, set up parental controls and create passwords for the parental control features. You can also control online access by using the block and/or restrict features available on most video game consoles.
  • Seek games that offer the ability to block or restrict individuals who can play with your teen and allow you to mute other individuals from chatting with them.
  • Learn about how the game works and play along.
  • Know your teen’s passwords, usernames, and the friends they are playing against and chatting with online.
  • Review the game’s guidelines and see if there is an option to report inappropriate activity.
  • Explain to your teen they should never meet in person with someone they’ve first met in a game without a parent or safe adult present.
  • Remind them other users online are not necessarily who they say they are and not to believe everything a person tells them online. Remind them to block and report anyone who is inappropriate or offensive in games.
  • Have regular conversations about games they are playing and the opponents they play against in the games.
  • Ensure your teen understands they can talk to you about anything online that makes them feel uncomfortable without fear of losing internet or gaming privileges.

Video-sharing platforms

Video-sharing platforms can be a great outlet for creativity, and many teens enjoy browsing videos uploaded by other users. Yet, on some video-sharing platforms, teens can easily view or upload inappropriate videos and comment sections can open them up to harassing statements.

  • Many video-sharing platforms do not provide the option of restricting who may view certain videos.
  • Teens can inadvertently give out personal information in videos. Backgrounds stating their school’s name or mentioning landmarks could allow someone to track where the teen lives.
  • Comment sections open users to harassing and/or inappropriate responses to uploaded videos.
  • Be aware of who’s connecting with your teen on the platform and what information their teen is sharing in their videos.
  • Check out your teen’s favourite videos and the channels they subscribe to. These can give you clues about what type of content they’re watching on the site.
  • Review where and how to report inappropriate content found on the site.
  • Learn about the video-sharing platform’s comments section to see if comments can be turned off.
  • Discuss what information your teen should and should not be revealing in their videos.
  • Encourage your teen to protect their privacy by setting personal videos to “private” or “unlisted” when possible.
  • Show your teen how to report inappropriate videos and comments.