ONLINE safety is something which concerns parents, especially now there are so many occasions when their children use the internet. There are also many more devices available now, such as smart phones, tablets or games consoles, which can access websites. Social networks can be attractive places to visit, but sadly there can be a down-side.

The Prime Minister made a speech in July about the dangers of things like online pornography and about some of the measures which are being taken to counter this. But any parent will know that there are other hazards as well and awareness is all-important, for children as well as their parents.

CEOP, which is the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre, is working to safeguard children and young people. I thought that parents might be able to find reassurance and empowerment to deal with concerns they may have by looking at the information available.

The thinkuknow website – www.thinkuknow.co.uk – has information for parents and carers, or teachers/trainers. This site also has sections aimed at various age groups: 5-7, 8-10 and 11-16.

It empowers children too by letting them know that they can contact organisations like Childline (0800 1111) in confidence and talk to trained counsellors. The main CEOP website also has information for parents – www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/parents/ introduces other sources of advice, such as services like Cyber Mentors. http://www.cybermentors is a place children can go to talk to others who are the same age, if they are worried about bullying or are troubled by anything they’ve encountered online.

There were some initiatives reported in David Cameron’s speech which did not receive a lot of coverage but which are helpful to know about.

For instance, 90 per cent of public wi-fi is provided by 6 companies. These are O2, Virgin Media, Sky, Nomad, BT and Arqiva. There’s now an agreement with all these companies on an important issue for families. Family-friendly filters will be applied across public wi-fi networks wherever children are likely to be present. That was due to be put in place from the end of August 2013.

There is also a push to introduce an easily recognisable family –friendly wi-fi will be applied across public wi-fi networks wherever children are likely to be present. That was due to be put in place from the end of August 2013.

There is also a push to introduce an easily recognisable family –friendly wi-fi symbol so commercial organisations like retailers could show their customers that public wi-fi is properly filtered.

Mobile phone operators have also agreed to put adult content filters automatically on phones. Anyone wanting to deactivate these would have to prove they are over 18.

Internet Service Providers have all altered their technology so that once filters are installed on home networks they will cover any device connected to that account.