Connecting online

State of play — connecting and sharing online

Young people 8 to 17 years (kids 8 to 12 years, teens 13 to 17 years)

Talking to strangers

38% of young people used the internet to chat to someone they did not know:

• 42% boys, 34% girls
• 50% teens, 27% kids

Young people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds or those living with disability were more likely to connect with strangers online:

• 44% CALD, 37% non CALD
• 50% with disability, 37% no disability

Making friends

24% reported making friends with someone they first met online. 

Making friends online increased with age: 

• 34% teens, 14% kids

Young people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds and those living with disability have a preference for making friends online:

• 31% CALD, 22% non CALD
• 35% with disability, 23% no disability

Sharing information

Information they share with people they only know online:

• 19% general information
• 14% personal information
• 10% fake information

17% shared passwords to their emails and social media accounts.

People they shared with:

• 65% parents
• 37% friend
• 21% siblings
• 13% boy/girlfriend
• 5% teacher 
• 2% other

Who they share with varies depending on their age. For example, sharing with:

• parents: 88% kids, 44% teens
• friend: 21% kids, 52% teens
• boy/girlfriend: 5% kids, 22% teens

Source: Youth and digital dangers, Office of the eSafety Commissioner, 3 May 2018

Data drawn from eSafety’s Youth Digital Participation Survey, using a random sample of 3,017 young people in Australia aged 8 to 17 years in the 12 months to June 2017 (kids 8 to 12 years, teens 13 to 17 years)