What are the perceived risks?

For adults at risk of harm online they cover a number of key areas, including:

• Accessing or becoming exposed to inappropriate content – websites with self-harm, violence and racism
• Being exposed to radical views and far-right extremism
• Receiving unwanted contact through social media – grooming, sexual harassment, cyberbullying
• Improper conduct of the person in their use of the internet
• Potential scamming – fraud and embezzlement

Beyond these more general and perceived risks, there are a number of specific online risks identified in the literature, including:

• Being blocked from a group or activity on the internet
• Being told unpleasant things or insulted
• Being threatened
• Receiving sexual photos or videos that they did not want to receive
• Being asked to meet up
• Passwords being used without their consent
• Being harassed to buy something they did not want
• Losing money online
• Being asked for personal information with no apparent reason

Being online also encompasses a number of activities, including: chatting and posting on social media; gaming; shopping/banking and; watching/interacting with videos or other content. These types of activities can also take place on a range of devices including: personal computers; laptops; tablets; phones; smart TVs and; gaming consoles. The way people behave online is constantly evolving and increasingly complex. For example, online gaming can involve people chatting by text or live through microphones/headsets, with whole groups, communities and friendships existing in those virtual worlds.