Online gaming

Online games can be great fun for your child, but make sure you can help them manage the risks.

Many games can improve your child’s coordination, problem-solving and multi-tasking skills, as well as help build social skills through online interactivity with other players. But it is also important to understand what might go wrong and have a negative impact on your child.

How common is it?

• 81% of children aged 8 to 17 have played an online game

• 64% have played a multiplayer online game with others

• 52% have played with people they did not know

• 17% have experienced bullying or abuse while playing a network game with others

• 34% have made an in-game purchase and this rose to 45% when they played a network game with others

How to create a safer gaming environment for your child

Prepare

• Locate the computer or console in an open area of your home; for handhelds, encourage play in the family room.
• Install current security software on all devices to protect against viruses, malware and other online threats.
• Activate parental controls and safety features on the device or in the app/browser to restrict content and limit spending.

Build good habits

• Help your child protect their privacy online. Encourage the use of a screen name that doesn’t reveal their real identity.
• Teach them not to click on links provided by strangers, such as “cheat” programs that may contain malware.
• Agree on strategies to help them switch off, like a timer that signals the end of game time.

Stay involved

• Talk regularly about their gaming interests and who they play with. Help them understand risks.
• Play alongside your child to see how they handle personal information and who they communicate with.
• Keep an eye on how long they spend online and changes in activity, school or social behaviours.
• Encourage them to tell you if anything worries them or makes them uncomfortable.

Be aware of what they are playing

• Games vary in violent/sexual content and in themes, language and images. Check suitability for your child.
• Use age guidelines and classification information on the game’s website or packaging.

Empower your child

• Wherever possible, help them make wise decisions for themselves rather than telling them what to do.
• Provide strategies for dealing with negative online experiences to build confidence and resilience.

Is your child spending too much time gaming?

There is no magic number of hours, but your child may be spending too much time playing games if their gaming starts to have negative impacts on them or your family.

Look out for signs such as:

• Less interest in social activities like meeting friends or playing sport
• Not doing so well at school
• Tiredness, sleep disturbance, headaches or eye strain
• Changes in eating patterns
• Reduced personal hygiene
• Obsession with particular websites or games
• Anger when asked to take a break, or appearing anxious/irritable when away from the computer
• Becoming withdrawn from friends and family

Grooming and bullying through in-game chat

Network games involve multiple players — sometimes hundreds or thousands. With these games, your child could be communicating with strangers (including adults) via webcam, private messages or in-game chat, increasing the risk of contact from online abusers, or bullying from other players.

Research insights

• Children aged 11–12 are most likely to be bullied by other players (≈22% in this age group vs ≈17% overall for multiplayer gamers).
• 42% of young people bullied while gaming responded by turning off the in-game chat function.
• 41% ignored the bullying and 38% stopped playing a game with the person.
• Nearly 30% reported the bullying to game moderators.

Help your child maintain their privacy

• Encourage them not to share personal information such as full name, birthdate, address, phone number, school name or identifiable photos.
• Suggest they use an avatar or image with a screen name that does not reveal their real name.
• Warn them not to talk to another player in private chat or game chat mode.

Be alert to grooming behaviour

• Ask your child to tell you immediately if a stranger starts a conversation about something inappropriate or requests personal information.
• If you suspect grooming, report it to your local police.

Support your child if they experience bullying

• Encourage them not to respond or retaliate.
• Keep a record of the harassing messages.
• Help them block, mute or ‘unfriend’ the person from their players list, or turn off in-game chat.
• Help them report the behaviour to the game site administrator.
• See more advice in our guide to cyberbullying.

Limiting in-game purchases

Some games may be free to download but require payments to advance beyond a certain point or to access extra content — like special powers or characters. Similar incentives to buy may also be offered in paid games.

Talk to your child about costs

• Explain that games, apps and extra features can cost real money.
• Set a reasonable weekly or monthly spend for apps, games and data, and help your child track their usage so they can make good choices.

Use parental controls

• Ensure parental controls are set on mobile devices and consoles to limit in-game and in-app purchases, so your child must ask to buy extras.
• Consider keeping store passwords to yourself, or set up ‘family sharing’ so any purchases must be approved by you.

This material has been adapted with permission from the Australian Government eSafety Commissioner. Permission to adapt content does not constitute endorsement of material by the eSafety Commissioner.