The 'tween' years online, from the new social media ban to the risks it won't fix, and what to do about them.
About the Talk
The tween years are when children start to slip out of view online. First smartphones, first social media accounts, group chats you've never seen, and friendships with people you've never met. The UK government's new ban on social media for under-16s, due in early 2027, is aimed squarely at this age group, but it won't cover many other areas of a digital life, nor will it deliver change overnight. Parents still have the most important part to play.
This talk sets out plainly what the online world looks like for a 10-13 year-old, those 'tweenage' middle years, and how the job of keeping them safe changes as they grow. At this age, you can no longer simply lock everything down. The work shifts from control to conversation, and this talk is built to help with exactly that.
Callum works through the four areas where risk sits for this age group:
Content, what they could see: Pornography, violence, and shocking material that curious tweens may increasingly seek out rather than stumble upon, alongside conspiracy and extremist content, and communities that normalise difficult topics from self-harm and disordered eating.
Contact, who could reach them: Grooming that begins with a shared interest or a kind word, strangers in games and DMs who come to feel like real friends, and the manipulation that works precisely because tweens want to feel grown up.
Conduct, how they could behave: The social world moving online, group chats, fallouts and exclusion, the pull to say and do more for likes and status, and a digital footprint that follows them into their teens.
Cost, the money side: Loot boxes and in-game currencies that edge into gambling, in-app spending, and scams aimed squarely at younger users.
For each, Callum explains why children this age are so easily caught out, the specific settings, rules, and conversations that work, and what to do when something has already gone wrong.
The talk lasts around 45 to 60 minutes, with time afterwards for questions and discussion.
About Callum
Callum is the Founder and Director of Lomond Cyber, with over ten years' experience in cyber security and digital safeguarding across government, the military, and academia.
His career began researching how extremist groups target and radicalise children online, and he went on to work as a cyber security professional in the UK Cabinet Office on national programmes, from election security to critical national infrastructure. As a parent himself, he founded Lomond Cyber to give families structured cyber security guidance and support.
Callum holds an MSc in Software and Systems Security from the University of Oxford and further degrees from Sciences Po Paris and King's College London. He maintains DBS clearance and Level 3 Safeguarding Children certification.
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