Parents are being urged to take internet-capable computers out of children's bedrooms to keep them safe from cyber-predators.
One in four children aged between 7 and 10 who use the internet has physically met someone contacted online, a survey has found.
While researcher Nikki Harre said most would have been perfectly safe meetings between children, the findings have astounded principals and stirred warnings for vigilance.
The study, by the Internet Safety Group and psychology researchers at Auckland University, is one of the largest of its kind in the world.
Safety group spokeswoman Liz Butterfield said more research was needed to determine how children met strangers on the net and how they organised face-to-face meetings.
In the meantime, she said, parents needed to learn enough about the technology so they could lay ground rules and communicate with their children about what sites were okay to visit.
As well as getting appropriate screening software, she suggested the internet should not be available in children's bedrooms.
"There it is seen as something that you do in isolation."
Parents who needed to learn about the internet should ask their school to organise an introductory lesson, said Liz Butterfield.
Controlling internet use was "very simple stuff, like being able to check the history of sites". Parents should go with their children if they met cyber-friends in person.
- NZPA
Parental vigilance essential in keeping children safe online
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.