Play safely! Creating a safe digital gaming world for children and young people
| Time to read:6 minutes
For many children and young people, online games are far more than just entertainment - they are their primary social hub. It's where they meet up with friends after school, build virtual worlds, compete, and collaborate. However, beneath the bright and playful surface lie real challenges that require us as adults to step in and set clear, safe boundaries.
Just as we teach children to look both ways before crossing the road, we need to teach them how to navigate the online gaming world safely. This guide covers what to look out for, essential protective settings, and a breakdown of today's most popular games.
Understanding online risks for children
Recognising what children might encounter online is the first step towards keeping them safe. On open gaming platforms, several key challenges can arise:
- Grooming and contact from strangers. Offenders often target children in gaming environments where building trust is easy. This can start with in-game praise or gifts of virtual items. Frequently, the individual will attempt to move the conversation away from the game to private, less monitored platforms like Snapchat or Discord.
- Scams and virtual fraud. Many games feature internal currencies and valuable virtual items (such as "skins" or avatar accessories). Children are frequently targeted by account thieves or tricked into trading their items based on false promises of "free" game currency or other tempting deals.
- Bullying and harassment. Aggressive language, exclusion from gaming groups, hate speech, and derogatory comments are unfortunately common in game chats. Children may also be secretly recorded or photographed within a game or whilst playing, with the media subsequently shared at school or on social media.
- Violence and age-inappropriate content. Even in games with a low PEGI rating, unsuitable user-generated content can slip through. This includes disturbing horror elements, strong language, graphic violence, or adult virtual environments.
- Radicalisation and hate speech. In unmonitored chat groups and forums attached to games, extremist groups occasionally target young people, spreading hateful ideology, racism, and conspiracy theories disguised as humor or memes.
How to secure your child's devices and accounts
Technical controls are exceptionally useful for reducing exposure to unwanted situations, particularly for younger players:
1. Adjust chat and contact settings
- Limit text chat: Check the game settings (usually under Privacy or Account Control). Turn off open text chat entirely, or restrict it so your child can only communicate with approved friends.
- Disable voice chat: Live audio from unknown players rarely features effective moderation. It is best to turn voice chat off completely for younger children.
2. Set up parental controls and PINs
- Enable parental controls within the game and link them to your email address.
- Protect these security settings with a PIN so your child cannot alter them independently.
3. Set age restrictions and content filters
- Register the account with your child's correct birth year. Platforms like Roblox automatically apply stricter default protections and chat filters for accounts belonging to under-13s.
- Limit access to specific game levels or custom experiences based on age ratings.
4. Protect location data and personal details
- Disable location services: Ensure the game app does not have permission to access your device's GPS.
- Use neutral usernames: Help your child choose a display name that leaves out their real name, age, hometown, or birth year.
- Maintain profile anonymity: Remind your child never to share photos of themselves, their school, or where they live.
5. Restrict in-app purchases
- Require a password or biometrics (Touch ID/Face ID) for every transaction on Google Play, the Apple App Store, or console storefronts. This prevents accidental spending on in-game items or virtual currencies.
The vital role of open dialogue
Technical safety measures provide great support, but they are not infallible. The most effective tool for safe gaming is an engaged, supportive parent.
- Banning gaming outright is rarely the answer. When children encounter something unsettling online, they often keep quiet out of fear that their devices will be taken away. Make sure your child knows they can come to you without facing punishment.
- Ask open, curious questions: "What's your favourite thing about this game at the moment?", "Who are you playing with today?", or "Has anyone in the chat been particularly nice or mean recently?"
- Establish the "platform switch" rule: Teach your child to say no instantly if someone asks to move their conversation off the game onto Snapchat, Discord, or TikTok.
Guide to popular children's games
Understanding the games your child plays makes it much easier to offer support:
| Game | What is it? | What adults should know |
|---|---|---|
| Roblox | A platform hosting millions of user-created mini-games, ranging from city simulators to horror experiences. | Features an internal currency (Robux) and open chat. Parental controls should be configured carefully. Despite a low entry age, many user-made games are unsuitable for children. |
| Minecraft | A creative "digital Lego" game focused on building, exploring, and co-operating or surviving against monsters. | Highly educational. Can be played completely offline, in private worlds with real-life friends, or on public servers with active chat functions. |
| Fortnite | A colorful "Battle Royale" game where 100 players compete on an island until one player or squad remains. | Features stylized gun violence. High competition can lead to abusive language or heated arguments that occasionally spill over into school life. |
| Brawl Stars | A fast-paced mobile game featuring short team matches played with various characters. | Contains microtransactions and randomized reward mechanics. Uses login incentives and "loot box" systems that mirror gambling techniques. |
| EA Sports FC / Roblox Football | A football simulation game where players build custom squads and compete online. | Heavy emphasis on card "packs" creates strong incentives to spend real money. Built around limited-time events and competitive FOMO (fear of missing out). |
SomeBuddy can help
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