Online Safety and Awareness (Secondary)

Curriculum content:

1. Rights, responsibilities and opportunities online, including that the same expectations of
behaviour apply in all contexts, including online.
2. Online risks, including the importance of being cautious about sharing personal
information online and of using privacy and location settings appropriately to protect
information online. Pupils should also understand the difference between public and
private online spaces and related safety issues.
3. The characteristics of social media, including that some social media accounts are fake,
and / or may post things which aren’t real / have been created with AI. That social
media users may say things in more extreme ways than they might in face-to-face
situations, and that some users present highly exaggerated or idealised profiles of
themselves online.
4. Not to provide material to others that they would not want to be distributed further and
not to pass on personal material which is sent to them. Pupils should understand that
any material provided online might be circulated, and that once this has happened there
is no way of controlling where it ends up. Pupils should understand the serious risks of
sending material to others, including the law concerning the sharing of images.
5. That keeping or forwarding indecent or sexual images of someone under 18 is a crime,
even if the photo is of themselves or of someone who has consented, and even if the
image was created by the child and/or using AI generated imagery. Pupils should
understand the potentially serious consequences of acquiring or generating indecent or
sexual images of someone under 18, including the potential for criminal charges and
severe penalties including imprisonment. Pupils should know how to seek support and
should understand that they will not be in trouble for asking for help, either at school or
with the police, if an image of themselves has been shared. Pupils should also
understand that sharing indecent images of people over 18 without consent is a crime.
6. What to do and how to report when they are concerned about material that has been
circulated, including personal information, images or videos, and how to manage issues
online. (For example, see Report Remove)

7. About the prevalence of deepfakes including videos and photos, how deepfakes can be
used maliciously as well as for entertainment, the harms that can be caused by
deepfakes and how to identify them.
8. That the internet contains inappropriate and upsetting content, some of which is illegal,
including unacceptable content that encourages misogyny, violence or use of weapons.
Pupils should be taught where to go for advice and support about something they have
seen online. Pupils should understand that online content can present a distorted
picture of the world and normalise or glamorise behaviours which are unhealthy and
wrong.
9. That social media can lead to escalations in conflicts, how to avoid these escalations
and where to go for help and advice.
10. How to identify when technology and social media is used as part of bullying,
harassment, stalking, coercive and controlling behaviour, and other forms of abusive
and/or illegal behaviour and how to seek support about concerns.
11. That pornography, and other online content, often presents a distorted picture of people
and their sexual behaviours and can negatively affect how people behave towards
sexual partners. This can affect pupils who see pornographic content accidentally as
well as those who see it deliberately. Pornography can also portray misogynistic
behaviours and attitudes which can negatively influence those who see it.
12. How information and data is generated, collected, shared and used online.
13. That websites may share personal data about their users, and information collected on
their internet use, for commercial purposes (e.g. to enable targeted advertising).
14. That criminals can operate online scams, for example using fake websites or emails to
extort money or valuable personal information. This information can be used to the
detriment of the person or wider society. About risks of sextortion, how to identify online
scams relating to sex, and how to seek support if they have been scammed or involved
in sextortion.
15. That AI chatbots are an example of how AI is rapidly developing, and that these can
pose risks by creating fake intimacy or offering harmful advice. It is important to be able
to critically think about new types of technology as they appear online and how they
might pose a risk.