Screen Time Burnout: New Survey Finds that After a Year Spent Online, Kids Yearn to Unplug

Learning from our youngers: Surprising insights from Arkose Labs reveal that kids and parents have reached a tipping point

SAN FRANCISCO, March 16, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Arkose Labs, a leading provider of online fraud and abuse prevention technology, today released their global study entitled “Navigating Internet Safety When Screen Time Becomes Full Time” that examines the online habits and cybersecurity knowledge of 129 children ages 6 through 17, as well as 56 parents, spanning the globe. The survey found that the majority of kids (53%) would like to spend less time online, signaling a tipping point. Additionally, 87% of the parents surveyed worry that kids have too much screen time, and not a single parent surveyed believes that their children are benefitting from the increased time spent online.

“One year into the pandemic, we set out to gather insights about kids and cybersecurity, fraud and the sharing of personal information, expecting to find data from the kids and their parents that supports the need for increased security measures,” said Kevin Gosschalk, CEO of Arkose Labs. “What we didn’t expect to learn is that the spike in time spent online for both school and downtime has led to burnout. An astounding 80% of the kids we surveyed reported spending at least four hours online daily. These kids, who just one year ago looked forward to screen time, have had enough, and so have their parents. Ironically, the pandemic and associated in-person restrictions may be what gets kids to finally put down their devices and enjoy offline activities.”

“It’s been a long year, and I definitely see burnout happening with my kids and their friends,” said Kakoli Parai, PhD, parent of two children who participated in the study. “The novelty of being online all the time has worn off, and we are trying to manage that as a family with more unplugged activities when the school day is over.”

The survey also found that while 71% of parents worry about their child’s personal data being captured online, 33% believe that their child is more aware of cybersecurity now that they are spending additional time online. As for the kids, 42% report being more cautious online due to cybersecurity issues. However, 66% of parents don’t think that there are sufficient tools and methods to help protect their child from online dangers.

“The good news is that children are becoming increasingly savvy about internet safety, but there is still significant concern among parents who would like for there to be more resources available to protect their children online,” said Gosschalk.

To complement the study, Arkose Labs talked to some of the children on Zoom to hear more of their thoughts. The summary video can be seen here.

“It’s never too early to instill good cybersecurity habits, and the research Arkose Labs is doing with children and their parents provides invaluable industry insight into a demographic that’s spending a significant amount of time online and therefore is at the most risk,” said Julie Conroy, research director for Aite Group’s Fraud & AML practice and covers fraud, data security, anti-money laundering, and compliance issues. “My kid is more cybersavvy than most, given that his mom is in the anti-fraud field, and I’m still frequently having to coach him about online risks. Many parents and kids are not well attuned to these risks, which represents an increasing attack surface for organized crime rings.”

To learn more about Arkose Labs and its Fraud and Abuse Defense Platform, visit www.arkoselabs.com. To get your copy of the eBook “Navigating Internet Safety When Screen Time Becomes Full Time” visit link: https://www.arkoselabs.com/resource/navigating-internet-safety-when-screen-time-becomes-full-time/

About Arkose Labs

Arkose Labs bankrupts the business model of fraud. Its patented platform combines Arkose Detect, a sophisticated risk engine, with Arkose Enforce, which uses targeted step-up challenges to wear fraudsters down and diminish their ROI. The world’s largest brands trust Arkose Labs to protect their customer journey while delivering unrivaled user experiences. Arkose Labs is based in San Francisco, Calif., with offices in Brisbane, Australia. For more information, visit www.arkoselabs.com or on Twitter @ArkoseLabs.

Media Contact:

Paul Wilke

arkose@uprightcomms.com

+1-415-881-7995

A video accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4bbdbec6-eabf-4428-b63b-fc5beff0d8cf