The Online Safety Act: Are children safer online?
This report explores what — if anything — has changed in the online lives of families in the UK since the Online Safety Act (OSA) came into force.
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What’s in the report?
Using data from surveys and focus groups, this research offers an early view of how new online safety rules are shaping families lives.
While they are seeing positive changes, such as more child-friendly content, limits on risky features and greater control, children still encounter harmful content. Additionally, key issues like ineffective age checks, screen time and AI risks remain insufficiently addressed. As a result, much of the responsibility for managing online safety continues to fall on families.
Drawing on this research, the report highlights what further action families need to ensure children can thrive in a digital world.
Parents and children largely welcome new safety measures in online spaces.
- Seven in ten children (68%) and parents (67%) report seeing more safety features such as ways to report and filter content.
- About half of children (53%) say they were recently asked to verify their age on platforms.
- There is optimism among some parents and children that the online world is getting safer, with 39% of parents and 42% of children saying it has become safer recently.
- 54% of children report that the content they have seen online recently is more child friendly.
Legislation is now yet delivering outcomes needed to measurably improve families’ online lives.
- 46% of children think that age checks are easy to bypass.
- A third (32%) of children have bypassed age checks by using methods like entering a fake birthday or even drawing on facial hair.
- A quarter (26%) of parents have allowed their child to bypass age checks.
- Children still continue to encounter harm online, with 49% of children saying they have experienced harm online in the past month.
- Parents and children remain worried about how much time children spend online and the rise of AI-generated content.
Families agree that there needs to be stronger action to keep children safe online.
- Only 22% of parents and 31% of children believe the Government is doing enough to protect children online.
- For some, banning social media was seen as the best way to reduce harm and improve children’s wellbeing, while reducing the burden on parents.
- For others, this approach was seen as likely to be ineffective and potentially detrimental for children’s social and developmental wellbeing.
- Stronger enforcement of the OSA, stricter age checks and restricting harmful features are popular alternatives to a ban.
Parents and children recognise online safety as a shared responsibility. Initiatives to improve children’s safety and wellbeing in online spaces must follow these principles:
- Safety-by-design: Safety should be built into online services and new features from the start.
- Risk-based approach: Children’s access to online services should be determined by the level of risk posed by its features, functionalities and content, and the effectiveness of the safeguards it has in place.
- Age-appropriate experiences: Children’s access to content and features should be tailored to their stage of development rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.
- Highly effective age assurance: Robust age checks are needed to accurately determine users ages and implement appropriate safeguards.
- Media literacy: This should be built into platforms and supported by schools and government for both parents and children.
Voices of families
This research is part of our Digital Wellbeing Index research programme. This year, the annual survey included questions exploring children’s and parents’ views of the Online Safety Act.
We combined this survey data with qualitative research, featuring seven focus groups — four with children aged 11-16 and three with parents and guardians of children aged 11-16.
Parents’ and children’s own words highlight key findings throughout the report.
'I'm definitely supportive [of new rules] but what worries me is how effective they can really be.' – Mum of boy, 16
'Lots of my friends on TikTok have age restrictions on their profile, so they can't message people or share videos with them.' – Girl, 14
'I did catch my son using an eyebrow pencil to draw a moustache on his face, and it verified him as 15 years old.' – Mum of boy, 12
'I think it’s good [age verification] so people not the right age can’t get onto like, gambling stuff.' – Girl, 13
'A blanket ban on social media is going to be a lot more effective than the sorts of things they're trying to do at the moment.' – Dad of girl, 11
I have helped my son get around them. It was to play a game, and I knew the game, and I was happy and confident that I was fine with him playing it. – Mum of non-binary child, 13
'I know WhatsApp's quite safe because you have to properly enter their number, and if it's just a random person messaging you usually there's a really quick block button.' – Boy, 13
'On WhatsApp and Snapchat, they have these group chats with kids from other schools my child won't even know, and they can say some horrible, nasty things.' – Dad of girl, 11
'I definitely say I spend a lot of time on my phone. I'm on it at 3AM on a school night.' – Girl, 16
Read about families views on online safety
Explore the report below to read our key findings and recommendations for improving children’s online safety and wellbeing.
Supporting resources
Explore additional insights into the Online Safety Act and find advice for parents to support children’s safety as the OSA develops.
How age checks under the Online Safety Act work
5 ways the OSA is changing how children experience the online world
Step-by-step parental controls
Conversation starter guides
Advice by age
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