Major new research has revealed that only one in five parents trust mobile networks with their child’s online safety. In polling of 1,000 parents of 5–16-year-olds, just 22% of respondents tended to trust mobile networks, with the remainder either having mixed views or tending to distrust them.
The figures were similarly stark for tech companies such as phone manufacturers, with just 20% tending to trust them, and the trust levels in social media companies being even more negative, with only 14% tending to trust.
The findings come as the UK government prepares to introduce restrictions on social media use for under-16s, with measures currently expected to come into force in spring 2027. It also follows on from the idea that telcos have a bigger role to play as gatekeepers in keeping children safe online, with MVNO Rebel Telecom creating an eSIM based service designed to do just that.
However, the research reveals a significant gap between parental support for intervention and confidence that it will actually work. While 73% of parents backed a complete ban on social media for under-16s, only 53% believed such a ban was likely to be effective. The poll, which asked parents a range of questions about their children’s social media usage, was commissioned by telecoms business 24 Seven and is the first time that data has been gathered from such a large sample.
David Samuel, Founder and Managing Director of 24 Seven says: “There is a clear disconnect here. Parents want a total ban yet don’t have faith in the government to deliver it. Therefore, we need to also consider how technology can play its part.
“This distrust of governments, regulators and big-tech in terms of who should shoulder responsibility is worrying. In fact, our polling showed that the only people parents really trusted with their child’s safety was themselves. While the Government are set to legislate on the matter, and social media companies claim to be able to protect children, what’s missing is a tool that gives parents the control they desire over their child’s online usage.
“When it comes to banning social media for under-16s, we need to view this a mobile-first challenge. Mobile devices introduce the most risk for under 16s because usage can be unsupervised and outside of the home environment.”
24 Seven’s study highlighted the potential worries that parents face. ‘Being targeted by strangers’ came out as the top fear (52%), with ‘Cyber Bullying’ second at (44%) and ‘Inappropriate content’ (37%) being next in order of priority.
The poll also revealed the scale of the challenge, with 60% of parents allowing their children to have over one hour of unsupervised screen time per day.
Samuel adds: “While Government can count on the support of British parents for this initiative, the bigger challenge is now convincing them that it can be effective. Where we’ve seen social media bans come into force in other countries, notably Australia, the adoption has been a different story, with studies showing that up to 80% of 10-16 year olds are still accessing social media. More needs to be done now by technology experts – outside of the social media giants themselves – who will be able to step in and help parents to ensure that adoption is much higher. Without this, there is a real risk the issue will continue to build.
“There is a contradiction at the heart of parent’s views on online safety. It is clearly a massive worry for parents, with more than a quarter (26%) having lost sleep on the issue, but there is general scepticism about how to manage the problem.
The polling was carried out by British Polling Council accredited pollster Censuswide. Research was undertaken in August via online survey.
