79% of Brazilian children and adolescents who use the Internet have social media profiles

The TIC Kids Online 2013 Survey, conducted by CETIC.br, interviewed 2,261 child and adolescent Internet users

The number of children and adolescents present on social media is growing more and more in Brazil. According to the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br), the TIC Kids Online Brazil 2013 Survey, conducted by the Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (CETIC.br), of the Brazilian Network Information Center (NIC.br), reveals that 79% of Internet users aged 9 to 17 have a profile on the social network they use most – a 9 percentage point increase compared to 2012.

The trend towards mobility is another highlight pointed out by the survey. The mobile phone is used by just over half of the children and adolescents to access the Internet (53%). In 2012, this proportion was 21%. Internet access via tablets grew from 2% in 2012 to 16% in 2013. Desktop computers remain the most used devices for accessing the Internet by this audience: 71%.

The TIC Kids Online Brazil Survey, in its second edition, is based on the methodological framework of the European network EU Kids Online, led by the London School of Economics. Conducted between September 2013 and January 2014, the survey interviewed 2,261 child and adolescent Internet users aged 9 to 17 nationwide. The same number of parents or guardians of the selected youths (2,261) was interviewed to identify the experiences of their children as Internet users.

Place for Internet use
The most mentioned environment for accessing the Internet is the living room at home (68%), followed by the child's/adolescent's bedroom (57%). The latter showed an increase of 31 percentage points compared to the previous year. “The results indicate an increase in Internet use in places where the child or adolescent finds more privacy, such as the bedroom. This represents a challenge for parents regarding the mediation of network usage,” points out Alexandre Barbosa, manager at CETIC.br.

With the increase of Internet use within households, paid access centers, such as LAN houses, are mentioned less often, dropping from 35% in 2012 to 22% in 2013.

Social networks and other online activities
Among Internet users aged 9 to 17, 77% point to Facebook as the most used social network. Meanwhile, Orkut, which was the main social network for 27% of children and adolescents in 2012, was cited as the most used network by only 1% of youths in 2013. Regarding activities performed, the highlights are: research for schoolwork (87%), watching videos (68%), and downloading music or movies (50%).

Skills, risks, and parental mediation
In terms of Internet usage skills, the survey shows that 58% of Internet users aged 11 to 17 declared knowing how to change privacy settings on social media profiles. Additionally, 42% of Internet users in the same age group stated knowing how to compare different websites on the web to verify if the information is true.

Regarding risky situations experienced online, 38% of children and adolescents aged 11 to 17 added people they have never met in person to their friends or contacts lists on social networks. “Older age groups report more potential risk activities compared to younger ones,” explains Alexandre Barbosa.

Among parental mediation activities, conversations about what children do on the Internet (81%) are the most cited action. Meanwhile, 43% of parents and guardians state they do activities together with their children online. When asked about risks, only 8% of the parents and guardians of the selected youths believe their child has experienced any uncomfortable or embarrassing situation on the Internet - a percentage similar to that verified in 2012 (6%).

Consumption and advertising
“For the first time, TIC Kids Online Brazil 2013 evaluated exposure to advertising and commercial content on the Internet and other media,” states Alexandre Barbosa. The results show that 61% of adolescent Internet users aged 11 to 17 declared having seen advertisements on social networks, while 30% did so on gaming sites on the Internet.

The interaction with online advertising proved significant. Among children and adolescents aged 11 to 17 with social media profiles, 57% say they have “liked,” 36% “shared,” 21% “unliked,” and 20% “blocked” some advertisement or publicity they encountered on social networks.

To access the complete TIC Kids Online Brazil 2013, visit https://cetic.br/ and check out https://www.cetic.br/media/analises/Infografico_kids_online_2013.pdf for the infographic highlighting the main points of the survey. Additionally, you can watch the video of the study's dissemination hangout at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPx9m5AcnVs.

About CETIC.br
The Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society, of NIC.br, is responsible for producing indicators and statistics on the availability and use of the Internet in Brazil, disseminating periodic analyses and information on the network's development in the country. CETIC.br is a Regional Study Center under the auspices of UNESCO. More information at https://www.cetic.br/.

About the Brazilian Network Information Center – NIC.br
The Brazilian Network Information Center — NIC.br (https://www.nic.br/) is a civil non-profit organization that implements decisions and projects of the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee. NIC.br's permanent activities include coordinating domain name registration — Registro.br (https://www.registro.br/), studying, responding to, and handling security incidents in Brazil — CERT.br (https://www.cert.br/), studying and researching network and operation technologies — CEPTRO.br (https://www.ceptro.br/), producing information and communication technology indicators — CETIC.br (https://www.cetic.br/) and hosting the W3C office in Brazil (https://www.w3c.br/).

About the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee – CGI.br 
The Brazilian Internet Steering Committee is responsible for establishing strategic guidelines related to the use and development of the Internet in Brazil, coordinating and integrating all Internet service initiatives in the country, promoting technical quality, innovation, and the dissemination of the services offered. Based on the principles of multistakeholderism and transparency, CGI.br represents a democratic Internet governance model, internationally praised, where all sectors of society are equally part of its decisions. One of its formulations is the 10 Principles for the Governance and Use of the Internet (https://www.cgi.br/principios). More information at https://www.cgi.br/.

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