Explainer
AI companion chatbots and teenagers: what changed when Character.AI ended open-ended chat for under-18s
One of the best-known companion apps stopped letting teenagers chat freely with its AI characters. What the company changed, why it matters, and what parents can ask about the apps their children use.
Pilot
KIFOV for Families
Clear, practical guidance for parents and carers on keeping children safe online and off, based on what specialist services advise.
What it is
Guides for parents and carers, written in plain language, that summarise what specialist child protection services advise and link to them. Start with For families and our guides.
How the guidance is checked
Every guide cites the services and official sources it relies on. Guides on sensitive subjects, such as sexual extortion or self-harm, are reviewed for safeguarding before publication and say clearly where to get professional help.
Status
Pilot: the first guides are published; more will follow.
Published work from this programme
Explainer
AI companion chatbots and teenagers: what changed when Character.AI ended open-ended chat for under-18s
One of the best-known companion apps stopped letting teenagers chat freely with its AI characters. What the company changed, why it matters, and what parents can ask about the apps their children use.
Guide
Violent online networks that target children: the warning signs the FBI wants parents to know
Groups such as “764” groom children on ordinary apps and games, then coerce them into harming themselves and others. Knowing the signs early is what makes a difference.
Guide
Roblox Kids, Roblox Select and age checks: a guide for parents
Roblox now decides who your child can chat with by age group, and switches chat off for anyone who has not completed an age check. What changed, what you control, and what to keep an eye on.
Guide
A child is being blackmailed with sexual images: what to do in the first hour
Stop, keep, report, remove, support. The advice of specialist services, in the order it matters, for the young person and for the adults around them.