Where can you report content that’s hateful or illegal, or inappropriate contact with an adult online?
If your child becomes upset or concerned about something they’ve seen online, it’s important to talk to them about what they encountered. Then, depending on the type of content they came into contact with, you have a number of options for reporting it. If they experienced bullying or abusive comments, or see something inappropriate such as pornography, racial hatred or images of violence, you can report it directly to the content provider – i.e. the website, service or app that hosted the images, videos or words and made them available to view. Most social media platforms have simple processes in place for reporting inappropriate content. Try searching for ‘Report’, or look through their terms and conditions, or Help section.
Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) Any images or videos that show child sexual abuse should be reported immediately to the IWF. Reports can be anonymous and confidential. You can report to the IWF via their website: iwf.org.uk.
ParentPort is run by the UK’s media regulators and allows you to make complaints about online content, wherever you find it. Their website is parentport.org.uk
True Vision is a police-funded site that provides information about hate crime. You can report all forms of hate crime, including online content, via reportit.org.uk. This includes racial, homophobic, transphobic, religious or disability hate crime.
Mobile phone content Report any unsuitable online content that your child sees on their mobile phone – films still images or just text – to your mobile operator. If the mobile operator requires further advice, the query may be passed to the British Board of Film classification whose website is bbfc.co.uk.
Inappropriate contact with an adult online You should report it immediately if you know or suspect your child has been communicating with an adult online who has done or tried to do any of the following:
- Talk about sex or other type of sexual activity
- Asked them to do something that makes them feel uncomfortable, such as sending them an image or video in which they’re naked or partially clothed
- Send them to meet offline
- Asked them to lie to their parents about their online relationship or tried to hide it
Should your child experience any of these things, report it immediately to CEOP (formerly the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre), the child protection command of the National Crime Agency. You can make a report via their website: ceop.police.uk/Ceop-Report
