Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘What Parents Need to Know About PlayStation 4‘ below.

Download: What Parents Need to Know About PlayStation 4 [PDF]

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What is PlayStation 4?

There’s a good chance you already know what the PlayStation 4 (PS4) is. Sony’s video game console is often touted as being one of the best-selling of all time, with over 100 million units shifted worldwide. With over seven years of polishing and fi¬ne-tuning under its belt, you’d expect the console to be one of the safest around. While this is overwhelmingly true, there are still things parents should be on the lookout for whether they’re children are starting it up for the ¬first time or they’re already experienced users.

In the guide, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as screen addiction, online bullying and adult content.

Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘What Parents Need to Know About Facebook Messenger‘ below.

Download: What Parents Need to Know About Facebook Messenger [PDF]

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What is Facebook Messenger?

Facebook Messenger is a communication and chat application which is part of the wider Facebook platform and has been a standalone app on mobile devices since 2011. Through Messenger, users can exchange messages and send photos, videos, stickers, gifs, audio files and play games. It allows both one-to-one conversations and group chats, has a ‘stories’ feature and provides the ability to set up a video call session with up to 50 people at a time through its latest update, Messenger Rooms. That’s why we’ve created this guide to help parents and carers understand exactly what Facebook Messenger is about.

In the guide, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as cyberbullying, screen addiction and secret conversations.

Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘What Parents Need to Know About Microsoft Teams‘ below.

Download: What Parents Need to Know About Microsoft Teams [PDF]

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What is Microsoft Teams?

Microsoft Teams, or simply ‘Teams’, is a platform that allows for collaborative working, either as students or as professionals, using communication capabilities through audio, video and instant messaging. The software is available both online through a web browser and to download from microsoft.com. Users can have 1:1 online meetings or set up live events to host up to 10,000 people. Groups can be set up to include only relevant users and almost all file-types can be uploaded and shared, from PDFs and Word documents to audio and video files.

In the guide, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as hackers, viruses and cyberbullying.

Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘How to Not be a Screen Zombie‘ below.

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It’s not always easy to tell if you’ve been spending too much time on your device. Mobile phones, tablets, game consoles, TV’s; the list of devices you might have access to seems never-ending and switching between them can be seamless. However, too much time on your device could lead to certain problems and could be an indicator of an addictive habit. It’s impossible therefore that you try and manage your screen time as much as possible and avoid becoming a ‘screen zombie’.

In the guide, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as mental wellbeing, screen addiction and grooming.

Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘Conversation Starters for Parents and Carers: Online Content‘ below.

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Trying to start a conversation about online safety with children can be a daunting task. There are many reasons why children may not want to talk to adults about it. One might be that they don’t think you’ll understand or that you won’t know how to help if they came to you with an online problem. It can also be hard to start a conversation about something that you might have limited knowledge about. However, with screen time increasing during the lockdown, it’s important now more than ever, to be talking to children about what they are accessing online.

In the guide, you’ll find tips such as cultivating a blame-free culture, asking them to be the teacher and ask about the risks.

Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘What Parents Need to Know About Protecting Personal Data‘ below.

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Personal data is a strange commodity. Cyber thieves can buy huge quantities of personal data on the black market for very little, yet your own personal data is hugely valuable to you. If your personal data falls into the wrong hands, it could lead to identity theft, bank fraud or something even more sinister such as stalking. The severity of that threat is multiplied when it comes to the personal data of children, when threats such as internet grooming begin to emerge. The bad news is that children aren’t always great at safeguarding sensitive information, which is why they need parents’ help and guidance. That’s why we’ve created this guide to show you how you can protect your own and your family’s personal data.

In the guide, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as sharing sensitive information, phishing attacks and social media visibility.

Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘What Parents Need to Know About Oculus Quest‘ below.

Download: What Parents Need to Know About Oculus Quest [PDF]

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What is Oculus Quest?

The Oculus Quest is the latest virtual reality experience on the market. Taking advantage of ever-evolving technology in the industry, the Quest can offer unparalleled levels of realism that really need to be experienced to be believed. From colourful cartoon worlds to photorealistic monsters, it can be the perfect tool to experience everything this, and countless other, worlds have to offer. As with any other gaming hardware, it’s important to know how to use it safely and ensure children are aware of any potential risks. That’s why we’ve created this guide to help parents and carers understand exactly what the Oculus Quest is all about.

In the guide, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as seizures and motion sickness, physical injuries and overuse concerns.

Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘What Parents Need to Know About Sexting‘ below.

Download: What Parents Need to Know About Sexting [PDF]

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What is Sexting?

Sexting involved sending, receiving or forwarding explicit messages, images, or video of a sexual nature. Although mobile phones are the most common vehicle for sexting, the term can also apply to sending sexually explicit messages through any digital media such as email, instant messaging, and/or social media sites. They can be set to or from a friend, boyfriend, girlfriend, or someone your child has met online. Sexting is often described as the new flirting for children, but it is illegal for anyone under the age of 18. Soe of the main platforms it occurs on are Snapchat, Tinder, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Instagram and Kik.

In the guide, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as online blackmail, bullying and breaking the law.

Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘What Parents Need to Know About Call of Duty Warzone‘ below.

Download: What Parents Need to Know About Call of Duty Warzone [PDF]

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What is Call of Duty: Warzone?

Call of Duty: Warzone is the latest and possibly biggest battle royale game on the market, following in the footsteps of titles like Fortnite, Apex Legends and PUBG. In Warzone, up to 150 players will drop onto a huge map in teams of three battling it out in an ever-shrinking radius, in a bid to become the last team standing. Because this is a Call of Duty game, you already know what you’re getting; fast-paced action that includes depictions of violence and coarse language – and that’s before you even consider players from across the globe adding their own voices to the mix.

In the guide, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as gaming addiction, adult themes & violence and in-game purchases.

Please find the National Online Safety guide for ‘What Parents Need to Know About Loot Boxes & Skin Betting‘ below.

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Some video games offer “loot boxes” as a way to purchase items. Similar to purchasing a pack of football stickers, players don’t know exactly what they will get. They may get a common item that has a low value in the game. Equally, they may get a rare item that has a high value.

“Skin betting” is when players use virtual items they have earned or purchased in games (often titled ‘skins’ because they are cosmetic features) as gambling currency. Players can use websites or apps outside of the game itself, which are mostly unregulated, to bet with “skins” on eSports competition outcomes. This becomes a legal issue when the “skins” you win can be converted to cash.

In the guide, you’ll find tips on a number of potential risks such as gambling, unregulated third-party communities and in-app purchases.