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AI for Research · AI and Online Safety

Staying Safe, For You, Family and Community

How to look out for the kids and teens in your life, help older family members without patronising them, be the tech person in a household without burning out, and keep learning. Plus a one-page safe-use checklist to work through at your own pace.

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// looking outward

Looking Outward

A lot of online safety is about you: your accounts, your data, your habits. This page is about the people around you: kids, parents, grandparents, neighbours, the mate who keeps clicking suspicious links. In almost every community, there is a handful of people who end up being "the one who is good with computers". If that is you, or it is becoming you, this is about doing that job without getting exhausted, and about the specific things worth teaching to the people you care about.

You do not have to fix everyone's tech. You do have to help the people you love avoid the three or four traps that cause real harm.

// kids and teens online

Kids and Teens Online

Children and teenagers have always been online differently to adults. They live on platforms most of us only visit (Discord, TikTok, Snapchat, Roblox). They talk to strangers routinely. They share things we would never share. That is not going to change. What you can do is stay in the conversation.

Keep it a conversation, not a lecture

The quickest way to lose a teenager is to deliver a talk about online safety. Ask questions instead: "What apps are your friends using these days?" "Has anyone ever messaged you that you did not know?" "Have you seen any weird AI stuff lately?" Be genuinely curious. You will learn faster than by explaining.

Agree on the "come to me" rule

Tell the kids in your life: "If anything online ever makes you uncomfortable, upset or confused, come to me and you will not be in trouble, even if you did something you should not have." The biggest barrier to kids reporting bad stuff is fear of being blamed or losing their phone. Name the rule. Stick to it.

Know the big risks, in rough priority order

Bullying and drama on platforms they use, the most common harm by a mile. Strangers making contact through games and DMs (Roblox, Discord, Snapchat, Instagram). Sexual content being shared or requested; Australian laws are strict, including about what minors send each other. AI-generated nudes and deepfake harassment, a growing issue in Australian schools. Scams and in-app purchases; kids are less cynical, so enable purchase controls.

Parental controls without paranoia

Both iPhones (Screen Time) and Androids (Family Link) have free built-in tools to see what is installed, limit screen time and block purchases. Not a substitute for conversation, but a useful safety net, especially for younger kids.

Kids Helpline and eSafety have great resources

Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800) is free, 24/7, for anyone aged 5 to 25. The eSafety Commissioner has parent guides, a youth section, and an image-based abuse reporting channel. These are the two names to remember.

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Helping Older Family Members

Older Australians are the group losing the most money to scams. They are also the group most likely to be patronised, ignored, or have help imposed on them rather than offered. Both those facts are worth sitting with.

Start from respect, not rescue

Older family members have run households, raised children, held jobs and navigated change for decades longer than you. They are not bad at technology; they have just had less time with it. The help that works assumes competence and explains cause, not "let me just do it for you".

The three things worth their time

Two-factor authentication on their primary email (this alone stops most account takeovers); the three warning signs of a scam (urgency, an unexpected link, and anyone asking for passwords, gift cards or remote access); and the "hang up and call back" rule for any call claiming to be from a bank, government or utility, no exceptions. Help with those three and you have done more than most family members manage.

Set up, then step back

It is tempting to do things for someone rather than showing them. Do not. Sit with them, show them once, then have them do it. If you do it for them, they will need you every time.

Be Connected is a free resource

Be Connected is a free Australian government program for older people learning digital skills, written for adult beginners. A good place to point someone who wants to learn more between your visits.

The family code word, again

Agree a family code word with parents and grandparents. If anyone ever claims to be a family member in a phone emergency, they have to say the word. This is the single most effective protection you can give an older family member against voice-cloning scams.

// when you are the tech person

When You Are the Tech Person

In every family, workplace and community group, somebody ends up being the one people call when the Wi-Fi is down, the email will not send, or there is a weird message on the screen. You might be that person in your circle. Some honest advice for doing the role without burning out.

Teach, do not rescue

The request is usually "can you fix this". The kindest long-term answer is usually "let us fix it together, I will show you". Twice as long the first time, half as long every time after.

Use the AI as your co-pilot

You do not have to know how to fix everything. When someone brings you a problem, open ChatGPT or Claude and troubleshoot together: "My mum's printer keeps showing offline, she is on Windows 11, a Canon printer. What are the most likely causes in order?" You are not meant to be a human help desk; you are a translator between the person and the tool.

Know when to refer

Someone with an identity-theft issue needs IDCARE, not you. Someone being harassed online needs eSafety. Someone with a bank dispute needs their bank. Knowing who to hand over to is half the skill.

Protect your own time

It is fine to say "I can help with the setup this weekend, but not mid-week evenings", or "let me show you how to ask the AI yourself". Being helpful does not mean being available 24/7.

// your safe-use checklist

Your Personal Safe-Use Checklist

The practical take-home, condensed. Print it, screenshot it, or save it somewhere you will find it. Work through it at your own pace; click an item to tick it off.

Password Practice: How Strong Is Yours?Opens in a new window Practise a Safe Sign-In, Step by StepOpens in a new window

Soon

Over the next while

Ongoing habits

// where to go for help

Where to Go for Help

Bookmark, screenshot or save these. Every one is free.

// keep learning

Keep Learning

Digital literacy is not a thing you finish; it is a habit you keep. The fastest way to keep building it is the one running through all of this material: when you are not sure whether a tool can do something, or how something works, open an AI and ask it in plain English. You do not need permission, and you do not need to wait for the next workshop.

// glossary

Glossary

Two-factor authentication (2FA)
A second check when you log in (a code, an app prompt) on top of your password, so a stolen password alone is not enough.
Password manager
An app that creates and remembers strong, different passwords for each account, so you only remember one.
Data breach
When a company's stored information, including passwords, is stolen or leaked. Check yours at Have I Been Pwned.
App permissions
What an app is allowed to access on your phone (location, camera, contacts). Worth reviewing and trimming.
Parental controls
Built-in phone tools (Screen Time on iPhone, Family Link on Android) to manage what younger users can do.
Family code word
A private word your family agrees on, used to confirm identity in a phone emergency; the simplest defence against voice-cloning scams.