Corporate parenting in the network society

In the past few years the risks associated with use of the Internet and social networking sites by children and young people have become a recurrent focus of attention for the media, the public, and policymakers. Parents, caregivers, and child care professionals alike are rightly concerned about exposure to pornography, pedophiles, and cyberbullies. At the same time Internet researchers have been steadily collecting evidence about the actual opportunities and risks associated with the young people's use of the Internet. In this article we describe some of the emerging evidence on opportunities and risks for young people and consider the challenges for social welfare professional charged with the role of safeguarding “looked after” children.