Online Safety Fears Grow as Pakistani Kids Turn to Digital Apps
Why this matters: local context for readers following news across Pakistan and the region.
As internet access continues to expand across Pakistan and children begin using digital platforms at younger ages, online safety has become a key concern for families. Research highlights changing online habits among children, with artificial intelligence tools gaining popularity alongside social media, streaming services, sports, and gaming platforms. The findings highlight the need for parents to understand better children’s digital interests, including the content they search for, the apps they use, and the online trends influencing their behaviour. The study, based on anonymised global and Pakistani data collected through Kaspersky Safe Kids during January and February 2026, shows a significant rise in children’s engagement with AI platforms. Searches related to AI tools made up nearly 25 per cent of all Google searches by children. Popular platforms included ChatGPT, Gemini, Character.AI, Microsoft Copilot, Grok, and DeepSeek, indicating how deeply AI technologies are becoming part of children’s everyday online experiences in Pakistan. Anna Larkina, a web content analysis expert at Kaspersky, said children are already widely using AI tools and are often more familiar with them than adults. She noted that instead of completely restricting access, parents should explore these technologies with their children, set reasonable boundaries, and explain both the capabilities and limitations of AI. She added that Kaspersky Safe Kids can help parents supervise and guide children’s online activity more effectively without relying solely on strict restrictions. The report found that communication-related searches ranked second overall, largely driven by platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest, while video streaming services led by YouTube and Netflix followed closely behind. YouTube remained the most widely used content platform among children in Pakistan, accounting for almost one-third of total app usage, mirroring global trends. Instagram and WhatsApp ranked