Who's reaching out to your kids? Rethinking messaging safety

Who are my kids talking to and how can I reduce the risk of online stranger danger?

Handing over a phone to any child can feel like you are opening them up to a world of possibilities. There are so many positives to your child having a smartphone or a feature phone, a key advantage being able to contact them while they are out and about, whether that be on the way to school or out with friends - the world is their oyster.

But with that freedom, there also comes the reality that they now may have access to a much wider world. That means not just family and friends, but potentially anyone online. As a parent, this can be both empowering and nerve-wracking. Who exactly are they messaging? What apps are they using to connect with others? And how can we encourage them to navigate online communication safely?

Children are being contacted by strangers online

In January this year, HMD conducted a global study of nearly 25,000 parents and children from 6 countries; and discovered numerous concerning answers of what children are doing with their time online¹. With this, the HMD global study found that:

• 51% of children have been contacted online by strangers.
• One in three has been encouraged to take conversations to private chat rooms or messaging apps.
• 56% of kids report being insulted or made to feel small online.
• 40% have been sent sexual or violent content.

It can be distressing for parents to hear that 51% of children have been contacted online by strangers, especially as they make the decision to hand a smartphone to their child. These figures highlight just how important it is to stay actively involved in your child’s digital life, through awareness, education and open communication. While the risks are real, there are also clear steps parents can take to empower their children to navigate the online world safely and confidently.

Private chats and the red flags you need to spot

Through the HMD commissioned global study it was found that one in three children have been encouraged to take conversations to private chat rooms¹. Children interacting with strangers in private chat rooms is especially dangerous for many reasons as it removes accountability and visibility from the stranger trying to contact your child. These private chats give strangers the opportunity to build one-on-one trust with your child without it even being on your radar.

Some warning signs you can look for include:

• You teen/child becoming more overprotective of their messages or device
• Mentioning “friends” you’ve never heard of in vague stories
• Showing signs of distress or anxiety after being online
• High use of messages that ‘self-delete’ or ‘disappear’

Encouraging transparency and openness without punishment is a great way to allow your child the chance to feel more comfortable telling you about topics like this. It is important to set boundaries around smartphone use and potentially monitor friends and friend requests. The HMD Fusion X1 has safe calls and messaging, parents have control over pre-approved contacts and only these can get through.²

The effects of dangerous content

Dangerous content online includes a wide range of online material that can be inappropriate, harmful or psychologically damaging, especially to children and teens. Through the HMD commissioned global study it was found that 40% of children have been sent sexual or violent content¹. Exposure to this sort of content can have varying impacts including emotional and mental impacts like sleep issues, desensitization and anxiety. It can also lead to behavioral changes like withdrawal, aggression or loss of interest in things that used to interest them.

The reality is that no single device can fully protect children from the challenges of growing up in a digital world. That’s why we are going further, integrating real-time protection against harmful content with SafeToNet. SafeToNet have developed HarmBlock software, a software that can recognize and block sexual content as well as block the camera when explicit content is being captured.

Although children and teens can come across inappropriate content on their own accord, it is heightened when talking and interacting with strangers, especially online. Private chats and unfamiliar contacts can open the door to more targeted and harmful content, which makes it even more important for parents to stay involved and informed about their child’s online interactions.

Within session 1 of the HMD Better Phone Project we heard from Luisa Fassi, PHD student at the Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit at the University of Cambridge. She has spoken on the harmful effects of distressing content on children’s mental health. Children are being sent distressing content and it is important for parents to recognize it.

Talking to your child about online safety

Starting honest and open conversations about online safety are a great way to encourage your child/teen to exercise caution while online. Creating a safe space where your child feels comfortable to share their online activities, both good and bad, can give you the opportunity to know what’s happening in your child’s online life. Here are some tips for having that conversation:

• Start with listening – build trust between you both, not fear.
• Use real life examples - Refer to relatable news stories or viral trends (to spark discussion about online risks and behaviors).
• Ask questions and invite honesty – “what would you do if someone you didn’t know tried to message you?”
• Teach them what to do if something goes wrong – reassure them that they can always come to you, no matter what.

It is important for parents to also remain vigilant, aware and understand how your teen’s smartphone and digital platforms work. The HMD Fusion X1 was created with the intention for you and your teen to set up their phone together. That way you can both understand the software and the smartphone.

Parental controls – is there a solution?

With a large number of risks and rewards associated with online communication and children, it is understandable that parents are searching for safer ways that they can keep their children connected. At HMD, we designed the HMD Fusion X1 to help with peace of mind for parents when handing over a smartphone to their teens.

Parents asked for better options—Now, after working with parents and teens across 84 countries, HMD is launching two new devices in 2025, starting with the HMD Fusion X1, designed to help teens build healthy digital habits while staying more protected. Created in collaboration with Xplora, a leader in children’s smartwatch tech, the HMD Fusion X1 offers a wide variety of features that both teens and parents will love. Namely, through the Xplora subscription, the HMD Fusion X1 offers secure messaging, a system where teens using the phone can only interact with pre-approved (by the parent phone) contacts2. Parents have a large amount of control over their teen’s contact list, allowing them to have eyes over who is messaging or calling their child. In addition to secure messaging, the device also includes other parental tools such as location tracking, safe zones and app management.

Luisa Fassi also spoke to solutions needing to be ‘software deep’: "When it comes to other content that is less clearly negative, we come into more of a grey zone. Here we really need more research and access to data, to better understand how these different types of content might be triggering for some young people, but not for others, and to build tools inside the platforms and outside the platforms, to make this platform safe by design, or to help groups that might be more at risk.”

Planned to launch this summer on HMD phones, HMD will be the first mobile provider to use this technology, developed in partnership with SafeToNet, which provides on-device AI-powered protection—automatically detecting and blocking harmful content before it reaches the user, without relying on external apps that can be bypassed. This software is a great step for those older teens who want some more freedom over their phone, but you don’t want them to be viewing, creating or receiving explicit material, especially from ill-intentioned strangers online. We are excited to be working together with SafeToNet to implement this software in the future. Make sure to keep your eyes on our page for more information to come.

We're ready!

While there is no one-size-fits-all answer to online safety, tools like secure messaging and pre-approved contact features can offer that extra layer of protection for teens and further reassurance for parents. Whether through open conversations, parental controls, or devices built with safety in mind, the goal remains the same, helping kids enjoy the benefits of being connected, while staying protected from unnecessary risks.