Engl. transl.: The risks faced by adolescents on the Internet: minors as actors and victims of the dangers of the Internet

The intensive use of the Internet among adolescents has increased concerns about the risks they face in the cyberspace. The objective of this study is to diagnose the risks faced by Spanish teenagers on the Internet, and to determine the influence of such variables as age, sex, and ownership of the school attended by minors. Method. The study is based on a representative national survey applied to 2,077 adolescents. The survey explores the risks faced by minors on the cyberspace: inappropriate content, contact with strangers, loss of privacy, cyberbullying, problematic Internet use or Internet addiction, and the safety practices adopted by adolescents. Results and conclusions. Young people’s high confidence coexists with a high involuntary exposure to inappropriate online content (pornography, violence, promotion of alcohol and drugs consumption, and eating disorders), along with the normalisation of various forms of cyberbullying. The results confirm that there is a significant percentage of teenagers that admit spending excessive time on the Internet and being addicted to certain Internet services.

The evidence shows that Spanish adolescents tend to expose themselves to inappropriate content quite often. Their main aim when using the internet is meeting new friends and harassment episodes are quite frequent among them. Even though many students have exposed themselves to online risks they seem to be quite confident on the internet.