Internet, Photographs and Mobile Phones

1. Introduction

We live in a digital world, where many of us use digital devices from the moment we wake up from our alarm clocks, asking Alexa for the weather, our sat nav. This is what our children and Young People know and see. Different ways of communicating with friends are important to a child/young people and these are now a way of life from an early age. When a child/ Young Person is placed with you, find out their background and whether the internet, photographs and mobile phones contributed towards any abuse so that you can plan their use safely for all children / young people but particularly those where it has been an issue. You should ask the child’s social worker for advice and information.

Your knowledge of different media will vary but it is important that foster carers develop their understanding of different electronic devices, the internet and social media, and that you learn how to safeguard children when using the internet and mobile devices. Foster carers should also be aware of and alert to the signs of grooming behaviour. Grooming is when someone builds an emotional connection with a child to gain their trust for the purposes of sexual abuse or exploitation.

See also Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) Procedure

By taking responsibility for all children / Young people’s activity online, you can greatly minimise any potential risks.

If you are concerned that a child/young person is being bullied over the internet or phone, you should talk to them about it, record what is happening in the weekly record and speak to the child’s social worker and your Supervising social Worker as soon as possible.

2. Web Enabled, Internet Technology/Social Networking

You should try and take part in a child / young Person’s internet use particularly for a new child / young person in placement; school homework is an ideal opportunity for this. Explain the web's positive and negative sides and tell them that if they are not sure about a site they should talk to you. Children should not be permitted to use sites that are also used by adults unless risk assessment has been carried out, in consultation with their social worker. These arrangements must be outlined in the child's Placement Plan and must be reviewed regularly.

Some useful guidelines are:

• Before a child is placed into your care, ensure you are aware and feel confident with the latest internet and social media platforms.
• You should set clear ground rules on the use of the internet;
• Computers should be in areas of the house where adults can see what is being looked at rather than in a bedroom;
• Set and agree time limits with the Child / Young Person on computer devices, which would include Mobile Phones, Tablets, game consoles, laptops and Internet Television;
• Appropriate internet security should be used on the computers to avoid access to inappropriate material;
• If a young person has a laptop then decide with them where and when they can use it if they are accessing the internet;
• You should show an interest in the internet and encourage young people to be open about any concerns or problems;
• Never allow a child to arrange a face-to-face meeting with someone they "meet" on the internet without first speaking to the child’s social worker;
• The child / Young Person should never respond to messages that are rude, threatening, or makes them feel uncomfortable. Encourage the child to talk to you about messages like this. If the child receives a message or sees something on-line that you are concerned about keep a copy and make a note in the daily record; Encourage the child to talk to you about messages like this.
• Remember that people online may not be who they say they are;
• Talk to the Child / Young person and explain not to click on any links that are contained in emails from people that they don’t know or to click on pop-ups advertising ‘too good to be true’ offers as they often lead to inappropriate websites or can download viruses;
• Teaching the child to be cautious is important and can help when they start to use social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter. You should always read any terms and conditions of websites, games, “apps” used. Once you’ve read them it’s important to explain and discuss them together to ensure you both understand them;
• Ensure that you keep up-to-date with the sites / Apps / gaming etc that the child/young person uses. Remember that technology changes very quickly;
• Be aware, If your child/ young person uses a VPN (Virtual Private Network such as through their Xbox or PlayStation), they may be able to bypass any security controls you have set up;
• When they do you should ensure the child's profile and postings contain nothing that might expose their identity or whereabouts;
• You should try to equip the child with the skills to decide who to trust, even when they have not met the person face-to-face and talk to the child/young person about what makes a real friend;
• Involve the child / young person in writing your own family code of acceptable internet use. Remember that what's acceptable for a teenager isn't necessarily okay for a primary school-aged child, so get their input;
• Does your child / Young person have a mobile phone? If so, do you know if they can access the internet through it and what applications they may have downloaded and be using;
• Remember what goes online stays online. Warn the Child / Young person not to write anything or publish pictures that might later cause embarrassment or problems. Never post comments that are abusive or may cause offence to either individuals or groups of society, as this can now be classed as a criminal offence;
• Surf together. Go online with the Child/Young Person and become part of their online life. The key to safe surfing is communication.

Again, you should be aware of and alert to indicators of grooming behaviour and possible sexual exploitation.

Social networking sites are websites where you can create a profile all about yourself and contact other people. You can also upload photos, music and videos to share with other people, and on some sites, chat to other people on forums. Popular social networking websites include Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) but there are others.

Social networking sites are often used by perpetrators as an easy way to access children and young people for sexual abuse. The Serious Crime Act (2015) introduced an offence of sexual communication with a child. This applies to an adult who communicates with a child and the communication is sexual or if it is intended to elicit from the child a communication which is sexual and the adult reasonably believes the child to be under 16 years of age. The Act also amended the Sex Offences Act 2003, it is an offence for an adult to arrange to meet with someone under 16 having communicated with them on just one occasion (previously it was on at least two occasions).

Radical and extremist groups may use social networking to attract children and young people into narrow ideologies that are intolerant of diversity: this is similar to the grooming process and exploits the same vulnerabilities. The groups concerned include those linked to extreme Islamist, or Far Right/Neo Nazi ideologies, extremist Animal Rights groups and others who justify political, religious, sexist or racist violence. 

Children may be drawn to adopt a radical ideology through a failure to appreciate the bias in extremist material; in addition by repeated viewing of extreme content they may come to view it as normal.

‘Internet Abuse’ relates to four main areas of abuse to children:

• Abusive images of children (although these are not confined to the Internet);
• A child or young person being groomed for the purpose of Sexual Abuse;
• Exposure to pornographic or other offensive material via the Internet; and
• The use of the internet, and in particular social media, to engage children in extremist ideologies.

Cyber-bullying – Online bulling often referred to as Cyber Bullying is any form of bulling that is carried out through electronic media devices. This may be computer, laptop, smart phone, games consoles. The difference with online bullying is that it can be 24/7 and even your home is not a place to escape it.

It should be noted that creating or sharing explicit images of a child is illegal, even if the person doing it is a child. A young person is breaking the law if they:

• Take an explicit photo or video of themselves or a friend;
• Share an explicit image or video of a child, even if it's shared between children of the same age;
• Possess, download or store an explicit image or video of a child, even if the child gave their permission for it to be created.

However, if a young person is found creating or sharing images, the police can choose to record that a crime has been committed but that taking formal action is not in the public interest.

With effect from 29 June 2021, section 69 Domestic Abuse Act 2021 expanded so-called 'revenge porn' to include threats to disclose private sexual photographs and films with intent to cause distress.

See: When your child is being bullied online: a parent's guide (Parent INFO)

3. Photographs

If it is OK to take pictures or videos always ask the child / Young Persons permission first and make sure they are clear on who will see them and why.

You should try and take photographs regularly of the child/young person to help record their life; it may also help when putting together their Life Story book. See Keeping Memories.

You should be clear on who can give consent for the child / young person to have their picture taken or be filmed for school etc.

4. Mobile Phones, Social Networking Sites and Apps

'Smart' mobile phones and some apps offer text messaging, taking pictures, sending and receiving them, sending and receiving video clips and sound tracks, as well as access to the internet which means a child can download pictures and videos.

With a camera phone a child/young person can also send pictures of themselves, friends and where they live, which can have security implications for some Looked After Children.

It may be useful to encourage young people to share details of how they communicate with others and an agreement reached between the young person, social worker and foster carer about how safely to do this.

The following is a set of guidance for what should be considered or when a child or young person has a mobile phone:

• Age appropriate use of the phones – Can the child / young person take their phone to school? Do they need to hand in their phone at the end of the evening before they go to bed?
• Safety – does the phone have internet access and if so have the carer, social worker and child / young person all signed the contract to agree that the carer will periodically check the phone for appropriate and safe usage? If the agreement has been made that the phone will not be checked document why;
• Where there are concerns about the use of the phone, you should report them to the child / young person's social worker and discuss appropriate sanctions – should the phone be removed?
• Where it is considered and evidence is available to suggest that the child / young person's mobile phone is placing the child at risk, the phone can be removed as an immediate measure. If this situation occurs, reporting to the supervising social worker or support worker and discussions about who should inform the child's social worker should be done at the earliest opportunity and action to remedy this situation taken. This should be recorded within the contract;
• Contact with birth families can often be the source of distress and upset. If the use of a mobile phone affects contact negatively with family this should be reported and consideration given to what measures can be taken by the child's social worker to address this;
• How is the credit for the phone managed? It is the responsibly of the young person to maintain credit for their personal phone with your support. Consideration should be given to pocket money, activities and any part time working undertaken by the young person. Appropriate support to encourage ordinary 'teenage behaviour' in relation to current mobile phone communication should be considered carefully. It is imperative that looked after children are not discriminated against simply because they are in the care system and they should still be given the same opportunities as their peer groups whilst being mindful of the safeguarding issues;
• Many websites have an “opt out” rather than “opt in” policy for some of their functions such as GPS services and facial recognition. It is essential to understand what services each site offers and how these options can be controlled.

Mobile phone network providers operate a barring and filtering mechanism to prevent those under 18 years accessing 18 rated content. The service can be provided for both contract and pay as you go phones. You are advised to explore this with the network provider that a child/young person uses or see what other services they offer.

Sexting

Sexting is where someone shares a sexual, naked or semi-naked images of themselves. It can also include sharing images of a sexual nature with other people, sending sexually explicit messages or passing on images of a sexual nature to groups of friends with or without permission. Any images a young person creates can be copied, manipulated, posted online and sent to other people in a matter of seconds. 

Not only can this be damaging to a child / young person’s emotional well-being if they fall into the wrong hands, it is also a criminal offense, even if the child / young person ( under18) took the picture of themselves.

• The NSPCC has further advice about sexting, see Sexting (NSPCC).

5. Social Networking and Foster Carers

If you yourself use Social Networking ensure that your privacy settings are such that only those who you give permission to can see your comments/photos etc.

6. Websites and Useful Information

NSPCC – Parental Controls

NSPCC Report Remove Tool - The tool enables young people under the age of 18 to report a nude image or video of themselves which has appeared online. The Internet Watch Foundation will review these reports and work to remove any content which breaks the law;

UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS) Digital Passport – a communication tool to support children and young people with care experience to talk with their carers about their online lives.

• Childnet - Advice for children and parents/carers about online safety;
• Childnet - Fun, games and information for all about effective internet safety advice;
• The Parent Zone - Guidance and advice for parents and carers;
• Child Safety Online - A practical guide for parents and carers whose children are using social media;