Understanding the risks that AI chatbots, image generators, and AI-powered features pose to children, and how to guide safe use.
AI Risks is the potential harms to children from artificial intelligence tools, such as chatbots giving unsafe advice, realistic fake images, and content that manipulates or misleads.
AI tools — including chatbots, image generators, and AI-powered features in apps — are becoming widely accessible to children. While they offer creative and educational benefits, they also present risks such as exposure to inaccurate information, manipulation, deepfake imagery, and inappropriate content generated on demand.
AI chatbots can produce convincing but false information, and children may accept it as fact. Image generators can create realistic fake images, including of real people. Some AI tools have been used to generate non-consensual intimate imagery. Children may also develop unhealthy emotional attachments to AI companions or share sensitive personal information with chatbots, not realising the data may be stored and used.
In your child's behaviour
On their device
Discuss how AI works
Help your child understand that AI generates responses based on patterns, not understanding. It can sound confident while being completely wrong, and it does not have their best interests at heart.
Set boundaries around AI tool use
Agree which AI tools are acceptable and for what purposes. Explain that personal information should never be shared with AI chatbots, and that AI-generated images of real people are not acceptable.
Encourage critical thinking
Teach your child to fact-check AI outputs, question what they read, and understand that AI-generated content — text, images, and video — is not always truthful or ethical.
In immediate danger: call 999. For non-emergency police matters, call 101.
Concerned about a child but it's not an emergency? NSPCC helpline 0808 800 5000. Childline for young people 0800 1111.
This is practical educational content to support families. For case-specific concerns about a child's safety, contact the NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000 or your local safeguarding team.
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