The Darkness I Confront: Why I Fight for Your Children and Their Safety Online Podcast

As many of you know, I’ve spent decades dealing with the worst parts of the digital world and the effects of it, working in digital forensics and incident response. I tell you this as plainly as I can, the digital playground today is unrecognisable from even a few years ago. Children’s and teens’ lives are now fully intertwined between the online and offline world, what happens online is absolutely real and the consequences can be devastating. The rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies introduces both great potential for creativity, innovation, and productivity, but also devastating risks for young people. For families, understanding AI is no longer optional; it is fundamental to their online safety. Here is what you need to know about how AI is impacting young people, from how they are using it to the risks to their safety, and the essential skills they need to think critically about with this new technology. ⚡Please don’t forget to react & restack if you appreciate my work. More engagement means more people might see it. ⚡ How Children and Teens are Using AI Today Children and young people are frequently the earliest adopters of new technologies, including Generative AI (Gen AI). Gen AI is defined as a form of AI that produces new content, such as text and images. AI is no longer a futuristic concept or pie in the sky; it is already weaved into many aspects of their lives: * Generative Tools: Children are using multi-modal generative AI tools such as ChatGPT and Dall-E. One 14-year-old boy reported using AI to create an image of his friend’s face on an AI body to send to a girl online, resulting in sextortion. * Chatbots and Companions: AI chatbots are a “hot topic,” sometimes presenting themselves as friends or companions due to their ability to mimic human conversations and emotions. These are currently undergoing scrutiny by the FTC in the US. * Gaming and Social Platforms: Gen AI is being deployed within many products and systems that children engage with daily, including games and educational platforms. Popular platforms like TikTok and Instagram have introduced tools like screen-time management and private-by-default ‘teen accounts’ in response to safety concerns. * Internet Consumption: Children aged 8 to 17 spend between two and five hours online per day, with nearly all children over 12 owning a mobile phone and watching videos on platforms like YouTube or TikTok. The Critical Thinking Challenge The rapid rise of AI and its proliferation across the globe requires digital literacy to be a non-negotiable part of education today and I worry that this is an area that is falling behind under current government strategies. Parents and Teachers will need to take more responsibility to promote digital competence amongs themselves and the children they care for. It will involve the confident, critical and responsible use of AI and other digital technologies connected to it. We need to ensure that AI is seen as an aid or a tool to complete tasks and not as something that you place your complete faith in, which is an area I have seen many young people fall foul to as they believe they can use AI to present work as their own and ultimately are caught but also without an understanding of what you produce, you only cheat yourself in the long run. The impact of AI on critical thinking revolves around two key challenges: * Navigating Misinformation: Digital literacy programs must teach children to develop an understanding of digital infrastructure, persuasive tactics, and data surveillance. AI is exposing children to misinformation (false or misleading information) and disinformation (information intended to deceive). This necessitates empowering children to verify information, recognize credible sources, and critically engage with content. * Developing Skills: Schools have a unique opportunity to design learning experiences that support essential critical thinking skills necessary to understand both the technical and et

Welcome to the Cyber Safety Guy Roundup, October 2025! I’m back and ready to tackle the biggest challenges in online child safety. This week, we’re unpacking my new, age-specific cyber safety presentations designed to target everybody from young children to teens and the adults who care for them. But how do we help children handle the pressures of the digital world? We’ll discuss practical strategies for turning daily Stress into Strength. Then, we’re venturing into the “Digital Wild West”—the unsupervised corners of the internet where risks are high. Finally, we’ll look at how quickly things can go wrong with a deep dive into the journey “From TikTok to Crisis.” If you’re looking for real talk and actionable solutions for online child safety, this episode is for you.

A new addition to my blog and podcast will be a monthly roundup of the posts I have written! Hopefully my dulcet tones won’t be too off-putting for you and we can have a couple of laughs along the way! Blog posts covered in this episode: You can also find this podcast on Spotify!