A Conversation with Cyber Safety Expert Paul Litherland – Jennifer Oaten
In today’s digital age, keeping children safe online is a challenge every family faces. With technology deeply woven into daily life, it is essential for parents to feel confident and well-informed in guiding their children’s online interactions. At Santa Maria College, we are dedicated to supporting our students and their families as they navigate the digital landscape responsibly. That is why we were thrilled to recently host Paul Litherland – founder of Surf Online Safe (SOS) and the 2022 WA Australian of the Year. Paul spoke with our Years 5, 6, and 7 parent community, sharing his invaluable insights on online safety and helping us better understand the challenges young people encounter online.
With over 20 years of experience in online crime prevention, Paul is one of Australia’s leading voices in cyber safety. His advice equips families with strategies that empower young people to engage safely in the digital world. In our conversation, we explored issues that matter most to Santa Maria families, and his responses offer practical, actionable guidance to help our community build safe online habits with confidence.
Understanding Today's Digital Landscape
Jennifer: Paul, after spending 20 years at the forefront of online crime, what is the most significant change you have seen in how children engage with the digital world?
Paul: The most significant change I have seen is how strongly children have embraced the online world to educate themselves and engage with their peers, in ways that you and I never had as children. The digital world has opened an amazing kaleidoscope of learning and engagement opportunities that previous generations never had.
However, what has been equally significant is the risks children are being exposed to due to the rapid advancement and unregulated design of the online world. Every year, I see children getting online at younger and younger ages. As a result, they are being exposed to harm because they do not truly understand the risks the internet presents.
Jennifer: Our parents often ask about age-appropriate device access. What guidelines do you recommend for different age groups, particularly our primary-aged students?
Paul: It is often difficult to give a cover all response to this question because some kids develop earlier than others and some take higher risks than others. As such, my advice to all parents is to introduce devices slowly, with a ‘walk before you run’ mentality.
Introducing a device with a graduated and restricted approach will help build a culture of appropriate use within the home. But above all, it is always important that conversations regularly occur regarding what are safe and unsafe practices and what is appropriate and inappropriate use?
Practical Safety Measures
Jennifer: During your presentation, you demonstrated how easily children can be found online. What are the three most critical steps parents should take today to protect their children’s digital footprint?
Paul: It is the link-ability of the internet which provides the opportunity to find out so much about people online. As a police officer, this was my greatest frustration, because an online offender could find out so much about a person simply by trawling the online world. As such, it is very important for students to truly consider “The Jigsaw Principle” of the internet. To try and minimise content online, which can build a picture of their real-world life.
My biggest message to all the girls is to treat their online world with the same level of respect they do in their real world. They would not hand out personal details about themselves to randoms in a shopping centre, yet quite often online they are doing this without considering the implications it could have on their real-world privacy and safety.
"Treat your online world with the same level of respect you do your real world. You wouldn’t hand out personal details to strangers at a shopping centre, so be just as cautious online."
Paul Litherland
Jennifer: You mentioned several apps popular with students. Which ones should parents be most aware of, and what specific features should they monitor?
Paul: Snapchat and TikTok are currently the most popular apps with teenagers and preteens across the country. As such, parents need to really be on top of how these apps are being used and the settings that can help minimise risk.
My biggest concern with Snapchat is the Snap Map, which gives a user the ability to share their current location and movements with their followers. Currently 46% of Years 7 & 8 students are accepting follow requests from randoms on Snapchat. They are, therefore, opening their real-world location to people they do not know. Parents must ensure their children are only sharing their location with people they truly know. They can select specific users to share their location with, or they can turn off the map completely by entering ‘Ghost Mode’.
My main concern with TikTok is the ‘For You’ feature of the app. Users can see all sorts of video content publicly posted across the network, and a great deal of this is inappropriate for younger kids. It is, therefore, important for parents to see who their kids are following and the content their children are looking at. Unfollowing or blocking certain users, accounts, or influencers can assist in ensuring the content being seen is more positive. Both TikTok and Snapchat have parental control options under the ‘Family Centre’ and ‘Family Pairing’ settings, respectively, so it is important to use these settings.
Addressing Current Challenges
Jennifer: What are some of the key challenges that parents are facing regarding access to social media? Could you elaborate on the warning signs parents should watch for?
Paul: My biggest frustration in regard to the challenge’s parents are facing is the ease of access to and creation of social media accounts. A child can create any number of accounts across any of the networks quite easily, and it is very difficult for parents to keep on top of this all the time. As a result of this ease of access, children are being exposed to much higher levels of harm at younger and younger ages.
Changes in behaviour, such as increased anxiety, frustration and anger, as well as sleep deprivation, can all be indicators of social media addiction. A noticeably heightened response to the protection and secrecy of their devices can also be a strong indicator that a child might be using a social media network without parental consent. As such, it is important to maintain strict rules within the home regarding device use.
"Those parents who take an active role in their children's digital life are the ones who have greater success in minimising harm and building a culture of appropriate use."
Paul Litherand
Jennifer: How can parents start meaningful conversations about online safety without causing their children to become secretive or defensive?
Paul: It is very important to get to know your child’s online world. It is imperative to have conversations and discussions with your kids not just when things go wrong but also when our kids are engaging in positive and appropriate device and media use.
Having spent 15 years at the coalface of online juvenile harm, I can say without doubt that parents who take an active role in their children’s digital lives have greater success in minimising harm and building a culture of appropriate use. Getting to know what our kids are using is the key, and assisting them in understanding what are safe and unsafe practices will ultimately keep the lines of communication open.
“Show me how it works” and “Explain to me what the app is all about?” are great ways to get kids to engage in positive interaction with parents. “What can you do to make it safer?” will also help kids understand mums’ or dads’ perspectives while exploring active ways to minimise their own risk.
School and Parent Partnership
Jennifer: Based on your experience with schools nationwide, what makes for an effective school-parent partnership in promoting cyber safety?
Paul: Collaboration is the key when it comes to an effective partnership between at-home and at-school technology use. Cyber safety at school cannot be effective if it is not being practised as vigilantly at home. Likewise, schools must also be actively aware and responsive, where practicable, to the needs of the parent body. It is very important to get the balance right.
Where Santa Maria is having great success, is the open communication you have with parents regarding cyber safety and the education you give your students around why such a proactive approach is required. The promotion of healthy online practices, whilst addressing the positives and negatives of the online world, is the key to promoting an appropriate culture of internet use. This is why I personally love reading your blogs, Jennifer; they are always so balanced.
Jennifer: What role do you see students playing in creating a safer online environment for themselves and their peers?
Paul: I had a great laugh with the girls this year because I told them in a typical ‘dad-like’ way, “Kids, you are the future!” As corny as that sounds, I know it to be true.
The current generation of teens is taking increasingly active steps to address their online risk and question those networks that are not keeping them safe. Many of them have already experienced online harm, and as sad as that is, such experiences provide an opportunity for them to assist and guide their siblings or peers.
Students are now actively monitoring their own online safety and becoming more aware of their apps’ privacy settings and safety features. They are doing this more than they ever have. They are also more protective of their peers and are reporting inappropriate content and behaviour in much higher numbers than they ever have before. It is this openly visual response to their protection and the protection of others that is starting to truly shift the culture of internet use for teenagers.
For the first time in 15 years, this is something I am truly excited about!
Looking Forward
Jennifer: As technology continues to evolve rapidly, what emerging trends should our school community be preparing for?
Paul: Sadly, my greatest concern for 2025 is the rapid increase in open-access artificial intelligence technologies. The lack of moderation and regulation being applied to these environments is very worrying.
The introduction of artificial intelligence applications that can create very realistic nude images or ‘Deep Nudes’ of anyone simply by uploading a clothed image of them is very worrying to me as a dad and educator. Sextortion has risen 2300% in Australia over the past 18 months, and I am concerned these apps are going to increase that percentage at a meteoric rate.
In addition to these apps, AI environments offering advice to children on subjects they may be too worried or embarrassed to ask a parent or teacher about needs to be addressed as a priority. Protecting kids from the reckless introduction of these technologies will be my next fight!
Jennifer: Finally, what message of hope would you like to share with our parents who might feel overwhelmed by these challenges?
Paul: I really want to let parents know we are finally starting to see a true shift in the response to online harm at a global level. Our current generation of teenagers and preteens are truly starting to become more aware of how they are being targeted and manipulated by online environments such as social media and gaming. This is an exciting positive.
In addition, a great number of organisations around the world are uniting against those who have failed for so long to protect the users of their environments. Australia, in particular, with the eSafety Commissioner, is the world leader in addressing the accountability of online environments with the goal of making the online world safer for our children. They have great resources that can help parents and kids assess and understand risk.
Education is continuing to evolve, and those kids who have grown up with the internet for most of their lives are now becoming our teachers, designers and advocates. As such, I truly believe we are starting to turn a corner, and for the first time in 15 years, I am starting to see the top of the hill.
So let us continue our education, let us continue to have open communication with our kids regarding what they can do to help minimise their own risk and the risk of their siblings and peers. Let us promote a balanced approach to physical and online world activities and continue to demand better from the creators of the online world.
Support and Resources
Navigating the digital world can feel overwhelming, but remember, support is available. For further insights into keeping your family safe online, visit Paul Litherland’s website at Surf Online Safe. His resources offer practical advice, helpful guides, and current information on digital safety to empower both parents and students.
We extend our sincere thanks to Paul for sharing his invaluable expertise and helping our community stay a step ahead in the evolving digital landscape. Together, let us remain informed, proactive, and united in our commitment to a safer online environment for our students.”
- Cyber Safety, Cyber Security, Digital Parenting, Featured, Internet Safetly, Online Safety for Kids, Parental Guidance, Paul Litherland, Social Media Risks
Author: Santa Maria College
Santa Maria College is a vibrant girls school with a growing local presence and reputation. Our Mission is to educate young Mercy women who act with courage and compassion to enrich our world. Santa Maria College is located in Attadale in Western Australia, 16 km from the Perth CBD. We offer a Catholic education for girls in Years 5 – 12 and have 1300 students, including 152 boarders.
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