What should I as a parent be doing?

Talk to your child about who they're talking to online and encourage them to think before talking to people they don't know in person.  Encourage them also to think about what sort of information they might be sharing.

Try to understand and guide your child's online behaviour - negotiating and establishing boundaries and discuss sensitively the issues around concepts such as 'friendship'.

Familiarise yourself with any programmes or websites your child uses.

Ask your child if they know how to block or report someone who they don't want to talk to. If they don't, helping them to learn how to use the blocking feature.

Use parental control software provided by your internet service provider, mobile phone network, online content provider or games console and considering using filtering options, monitoring and setting time limits for access to chat...but don't forget these don't block or flag up everything!

If you discover misconduct between your child and someone online stay calm, investigate the facts and seek expert help if needed.

If appropriate, as part of a wider discussion about sex and relationships, cover how people may use the internet to explore their sexuality, their ability to exploit and even harm others, etc.