Why the Gender Gap Demands Action for Children Feeling Safe Online
The proportion of children feeling safe online should command far more attention than it receives. The EU Kids Online 2026 comparative study reports that just 48% say they feel safe. Among boys, the figure is 57%. Among girls, it falls to 40%, a difference of 17 percentage points.
As a former Garda and an online safety educator, I regard this as a serious safeguarding signal. When fewer than half report feeling safe, we need to understand what sits behind their answers. Furthermore, the difference between boys and girls demands specific investigation. Recording that gap without identifying and addressing its causes would be an inadequate response.
What the Findings Actually Tell Us
The EU Kids Online study surveyed 28,465 children, principally aged 10 to 16, across 19 European countries. Researchers collected responses between April 2025 and April 2026. Consequently, these are findings published in 2026, rather than a snapshot taken on one date.
However, accuracy matters when discussing such serious results. The remaining 52% should not automatically become a claim that 52% explicitly said they felt unsafe. Likewise, perceived safety does not directly measure how many children have experienced abuse. Nevertheless, the absence of an affirmative sense of safety deserves investigation in its own right.
Children Feeling Safe Online: The Gender Gap
The report’s Figure 51 shows how widely the difference appears. Boys report feeling safe more often than girls in 18 of the 19 participating countries. Malta is the exception, with a slightly higher figure for girls. Selected results illustrate the scale of the gaps.
| Location | Boys reporting feeling safe | Girls reporting feeling safe | Gap in percentage points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 57% | 40% | 17 |
| Croatia | 65% | 39% | 26 |
| Switzerland | 60% | 35% | 25 |
| Spain | 64% | 40% | 24 |
| Belgium | 62% | 39% | 23 |
| Finland | 77% | 56% | 21 |
| Ireland | 77% | 69% | 8 |
Source: EU Kids Online 2026, Figure 51, printed page 104. Gaps are calculated from the published rounded percentages.
In Croatia, the gap reaches 26 percentage points. That is substantial enough to demand a focused response. However, these descriptive comparisons do not establish which experiences produced the differences. They tell us where to investigate, rather than giving us permission to assume an explanation.
Ireland’s Higher Result Still Requires Attention
Ireland records 73% overall, the highest reported country figure. However, the difference between Irish boys and girls remains visible. A better comparative result should encourage us to investigate what helps children feel secure, while addressing the experiences of those who do not.
Country rankings also require care. Ireland used interviews in children’s homes, while the wider study primarily used school surveys. Researchers must consider that methodological difference when interpreting comparisons. We should neither dismiss Ireland’s result nor treat it as proof that Irish children face fewer harms.
For me, the appropriate question is what safety means to the children answering. Does a child feel protected from strangers but threatened by classmates? Can they report abuse confidently, or do they expect adults to make matters worse? Those distinctions determine the support and changes they need.
Identify the Causes Rather than Guessing
The figures warrant investigation into unwanted sexual contact, harassment, appearance based abuse, bullying, image misuse and exclusion. Researchers should also examine privacy concerns, upsetting recommendations and confidence in reporting. These are questions for further investigation, rather than proven explanations for this gender gap. Girls must have opportunities to describe their experiences without adults deciding the answers beforehand.
From a cyberpsychology perspective, I would also examine the social consequences children anticipate. For example, could refusing a request bring humiliation within a friendship group? Might reporting someone risk exclusion, retaliation or losing access to friends? Understanding those pressures would help explain why knowing a safety rule may not translate into feeling secure.
However, girls are not one uniform group. Investigations should consider age, disability, family resources, sexual orientation and experiences outside the internet. Similarly, a higher reported sense of safety among boys must not become an assumption that they need less protection. Children feeling safe online and children receiving effective protection are related questions that require separate evidence.
Turn the warning into a proper investigation
I want to see a coordinated programme that connects children’s accounts with evidence about platform behaviour. Independent researchers should examine which services, interactions and features children associate with fear or insecurity. Regulators and platforms should then explain which changes they will make, who will deliver them and when.
That work needs several practical elements:
- Ask children privately what makes them feel unsafe, including experiences involving people they already know.
- Examine reporting journeys, including response times, repeat abuse and what happens after a child blocks someone.
- Test recommendations, contact suggestions, group invitations and privacy defaults through independent audits.
- Follow children over time to examine which experiences precede changes in their sense of safety.
- Publish results by relevant groups where samples permit, with uncertainty clearly explained and privacy protected.
- Evaluate whether interventions reduce harmful experiences as well as improving reported confidence.
Furthermore, researchers should distinguish exposure, distress, perceived safety and actual protection. A reassuring message might improve confidence without reducing risk. Conversely, better awareness might increase caution even when safeguards improve. Therefore, the goal must include demonstrably safer experiences alongside a stronger sense of security.
Platforms and regulators need measurable responsibilities
The European Commission’s guidelines on protecting minors under the Digital Services Act already identify relevant design changes. Recommendations include private accounts by default, safer recommendations, controls over group invitations and improved reporting. The guidelines inform assessment of compliance, although following them does not automatically establish compliance.
Consequently, platforms should demonstrate whether these protections work for different children in everyday use. Do reporting systems stop repeated harassment? Can unwanted contact resume through another account? Do changes reduce the particular experiences girls identify as threatening?
Parents and schools should receive clear findings they can use. However, their involvement cannot substitute for changes to the services children use. Education, safer design and enforcement need to work together, with each responsible organisation accountable for its contribution.
What Parents and Schools Can Do Now
For parents, begin with a calm conversation about where a child feels comfortable and where they feel uneasy. Ask about particular situations, rather than accepting “fine” as the whole answer. Watch for changes in sleep, withdrawal, anxiety around notifications or reluctance to attend school. These signs can have many causes, so use them to open a conversation rather than reach a diagnosis.
If something has happened, thank the child for telling you and avoid blame. Explain the next steps before taking action, wherever possible. Record usernames, dates, links and relevant threatening messages, but do not download or forward sexual images of children. Review contact and privacy controls together using CODA’s social media safety settings and messaging apps safety settings.
For schools, offer a clear route to a trusted adult and respond through safeguarding procedures. In addition, address harmful peer behaviour and follow up after an incident. Where distress persists or affects daily life, involve an appropriate health professional. Families can also explore our wider Resources for Parents.
In Ireland, report suspected criminal threats, grooming or exploitation to An Garda Síochána. Hotline.ie accepts reports concerning child sexual abuse material and intimate image abuse. Children can access Childline by phone or online chat, including when they find speaking aloud difficult. In immediate danger, call 112 or 999.
The CODA View
These findings deserve a sustained safeguarding response, with particular attention to the experiences girls describe. I want explanations supported by evidence, followed by changes that children can actually experience. That requires listening carefully, investigating specific mechanisms and measuring whether interventions work.
Children feeling safe online should be a central test of our progress, alongside evidence that harm is decreasing. We should be able to explain why gaps persist and who is responsible for addressing them. Until we can do that, publishing another reassuring safety message will leave the most important questions unanswered.
References
- EU Kids Online 2026 comparative study and research summary. Survey scope and publication information.
- Full comparative report. Methodology, printed pages 25 to 29. Perceived safety and gender comparisons, printed pages 102 to 106.
- European Commission guidelines on protecting minors. Design recommendations and relationship to DSA compliance.
- Garda guidance on intimate image abuse, Hotline.ie and Childline. Irish reporting and support routes.
Further Reading
Explore CODA’s Resources for Parents for practical guidance. Our social media and messaging guides support conversations about privacy, contact and reporting.
About Children of the Digital Age
Children of the Digital Age provides online safety education and training for schools, parents and organisations. Our guides support practical conversations about online behaviour and the choices people make. However, education and app settings do not replace safeguarding or professional support.
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