Barnardo’s has published a report exploring the impact of online misogyny on children and young people’s attitudes and behaviours. The research aims to help ensure that children’s voices about misogyny and masculinity are heard. Using data from a survey of 4,000 young people aged 13-20-years-old across the UK, findings include: around two thirds of young people reported seeing harmful gender expectations online; one in four girls reported being called degrading names online; one in seven young people aged 13–15-years-old had been asked to send a nude image of themselves; and a quarter of respondents reported seeing nude images that were originally shared privately and redistributed without consent. Young people said that they want tech companies to do more to prevent harm and have stronger protections in place. The report recommends that Ofcom’s guidance is strengthened into a mandatory Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) code of practice requiring platforms to take proactive, preventative action by embedding safety into the design of their services. It also calls for education, prevention and work with young people to challenge harmful attitudes to sit alongside a suite of regulatory measures to tackle online misogyny.
Read the report: The impact of online misogyny on children and young people’s attitudes and behaviours
Source: Barnardo’s
Date published: 27 May 2026
