Children exposed to indecent material on net

By Ben Hurst on Nov 11, 10 12:17 PM

One in ten children who illegally download files from the internet have been exposed to sexually explicit or offensive material, a survey revealed today.

But despite the apparent dangers of unlawful downloading, more than one in three mothers (39%) are unsure how to tell whether entertainment sites are legal or not, and nearly two in three (60%) do not understand the term "file-sharing".

More than one in four (29%) do not know where to direct their children to find legal entertainment on the internet, the poll by online parenting organisation Netmums found.

Children are stumbling across the inappropriate content when downloading films, television programmes and music from illegal sites, a spokeswoman said.

In an attempt to protect them against the dangers of illegal downloading, Coronation Street star Kym Marsh today launched a new guide on internet safety.

The actress and former Hear'Say pop star said she wanted to raise awareness of how to enjoy entertainment safely and legally online.

Called Music, Film, TV and the Internet and launched in partnership with internet safety charity Childnet International, the guide informs parents, teachers and young people about how to stay safe and legal when downloading and accessing music, films and television programmes.

It provides information on the safety and security risks of downloading entertainment illegally, such as exposure to computer viruses, receiving offensive material and theft of personal or financial information.

It also encourages parents and teachers to discuss with children the ethical implications of illegal file-sharing, such as the danger that artists will not be rewarded fairly for their work.

Marsh, a mother of two, said: "I find it incredibly hard to keep up with what my two teenagers are doing online so can definitely see the value of a new guide for muddled mums like myself who are concerned about safety issues."

She added: "When young people use legitimate sites to access music or TV content, it supports the many people who work in the UK entertainment industry."

Lucinda Fell, director of policy and communications at Childnet International, said: "We hope the guide will help parents and teachers to introduce the concept of responsible digital citizenship - the idea of behaving as safely and responsibly in cyberspace as you would offline.
"We often hear from parents that while they are concerned about downloading and streaming, they are also confused about what can and can't be done safely and legally."

:: The guide is available to download for free from today at www.childnet.com/downloading and will also be distributed to every secondary school in the UK by the end of the month.
Netmums polled 1,000 of its members for the survey.