No rise in use of online safety apps following Adolescence – data shows

A new Ipsos report has revealed that in the weeks following the Netflix drama Adolescence, there has been minimal change in the average use of some of the UK’s most popular parental safety apps.

The report, released on April 9th by Ipsos Iris, a service that measures online audience behaviour, found a “limited impact” in the number of people using YouTube Kids, Microsoft Family Safety, Google Family Link and bark.com, before and after the show launched.

Adolescence tells the story of a 13-year-old boy who is arrested on suspicion of murdering a female classmate, after allegedly being influenced by misogynistic content found online. 

The government has struck a deal with Netflix to screen Adolescence in all UK schools for free, following a national debate over children’s online safety. 

Despite the show’s impact, uptake of safety tools remains limited: YouTube Kids rose from 566,000 to 582,000 daily users after its UK launch, and Google Family Link from 309,000 to 318,000. Ipsos polling shows that 75 per cent of parents are concerned about online risks, but only 55 per cent use parental controls.

Beckie Goodfield, UK Country Lead, Media Development at Ipsos, said: “Adolescence has shocked the country into thinking more about the content children are being exposed to online. But Ipsos iris data – which measures genuine online behaviour – suggests there has been a limited impact in usage of some of the major parental safety apps, since the show launched.”

 “While the show has driven an important national conversation, we haven’t seen much of a change at all. This is despite parents regularly telling us they are deeply concerned about what their children see and hear online.”