Online grooming guide

• Grooming is when someone seeks to build an emotional connection with a child to gain their trust for sexual purposes and other types of exploitation. It happens both online and face to face
• Children may often meet people through social and gaming sites who aren’t who they say they are, so it’s important to discuss the risks with them
• Once groomers have gained a child’s trust, they may encourage them to share sexual images or videos of themselves, live stream or arrange to meet
• Groomers are not always strangers and sometimes children may not be aware that they are being groomed believing they’re in a relationship with the person. Older children may also groom younger children.

• Show them where to get help if they are concerned and to talk to you or another trusted adult for support
• Spend time discussing where they interact with friends online and how, and what they share with others
• Explain how easy it is to pretend to be someone else online, and why an adult may wish to approach them
• Remind them that the people they have met online might feel like friends, but they may not be who they say they are
• Discuss what healthy and unhealthy relationships look like to make them aware. Explore Digital Matters’ Introduction to Healthy Behaviours Online (under Online Relationships) to explore this concept more.

• Encourage them to make use of privacy settings on the social networks and platforms they use so they stay in control of who can see their content
• For younger children, use our parental control how-to-guides to set the right controls across devices, platforms and internet connections.

• Wanting to spend more and more time on the internet
• Being secretive about who they are talking to online and what sites they visit
• Switching screens when you come near the computer
• Possessing items – electronic devices or phones – you haven’t given them
• Using sexual language you wouldn’t expect them to know
• Becoming emotionally volatile

• Report it to the authorities
• Reassure them it’s not their fault
• Seek support from the National Crime Agency’s or CEOP
• Contact Childline on 0800 1111 or the NSPCC Helpline on 0808 800 5000 for one-to-one support
• Report any sexual abuse images to the Internet Watch Foundation

See more resources for support here.