How can I keep my child safe online?

There are lots of things you and your child can do to stay safe online. Here are some useful links from the BBC:

• Tips for parents on how to keep children safe online
• How to set up a Parental Guidance lock on BBC iPlayer

Or visit Internet Matters to find out how to activate parental controls for your devices, gaming consoles, broadband access and entertainment platforms around your home.

Child-friendly services and tools on the BBC

If you’re looking for something child-friendly on the BBC, here are some good starting points:

• CBeebies
• CBeebies Playtime island app
• CBeebies Go Explore app
• CBeebies Get Creative app
• CBeebies Storytime app
• CBBC
• Child profiles on iPlayer TV

How do I know BBC accounts and profiles are safe for my child?

We’ve got various safeguards in place to keep children safe. For instance, anyone under 13 who registers with the BBC only provides a username or display name (neither should be their real name) and their date of birth.

Get help with children's BBC accounts and profiles

If you’re under 16 and outside the UK

Unfortunately, you won’t be able to register a BBC account or profile if you're outside the UK and under 16. If you’re outside the UK and already have a child account, it won't provide access to the same child-specific content available in the UK.

You control what your child can do with their BBC account

To stop children accessing Guidance-labelled content, use the BBC Parental Guidance Lock.

Children under 13 can’t access certain features without permission from a parent or guardian. 

You can set permissions when you first create a new child account. Just follow the instructions.

If you want to manage permissions at a later date, the easiest way is if you both have BBC accounts. That way, you can link your child's account to your own and set permissions from there at any time. If you don’t have your own BBC account you can register for one.

It’s quick and easy to do. But you don't need a BBC account to manage permissions. When your child tries to do something new on the BBC, like commenting on children's websites, we’ll ask them to get you involved to approve this. You’ll either get an email, or you can manage permissions here.

Find out more about child permissions

A couple of things to bear in mind

1. BBC Children’s services sometimes collect personal information, just like the parts of the BBC that are for grown-ups
2. If we see a comment on a message board that makes us think a child is in danger, we may pass the comment and other details on to people who can help, like the NSPCC.