One in three children in South Africa has been exposed to hate speech and inappropriate images on the internet‚ while one in five children has met face-to-face with a stranger they encountered online.This is according to a recent study titled Kidsonline‚ which is being launched in Pretoria on Wednesday‚ ahead of the Global Launch of the Global Kids Online Toolkit in New York‚ Unites States‚ in October. The study found that children are generally active‚ engaged internet users and that they often begin using the internet from an early age - the average age was 11. "Children tended to not receive much support from their parents‚ teachers and friends around their internet use‚ and generally were free to use the internet without supervision‚" the study said. "That said‚ children reported facing barriers to their internet access‚ with younger children saying that their parents or other adults didn't let them use the internet and older children blaming the cost of internet connectivity‚ and particularly mobile phone 'data'." Children and parents also reported facing some challenges finding content online that was culturally relevant and in their home language. "The findings of the study suggested that children are in need of more support from their parents‚ teachers and friends‚ around how to use the internet safely‚ in ways that benefit their lives. "In particular‚ this would require parents themselves to be given guidance as to how to manage their children’s internet use‚ as parents currently feel ill-equipped to do so. "In addition‚ work needs to be done to decrease the cost of internet access in South Africa‚ as this is currently a major barrier preventing children from accessing the internet." The study was conducted by the Centre for Justice and Crime Prevention which explored South African children’s online experiences. Kids Online interviewed 962 children‚ aged 9 to 17 years old‚ in the Western Cape‚ Eastern Cape and Gauteng regions about their internet use. Their parents were also interviewed (552 of them)‚ to find out how they used the internet themselves and how they mediated their children's internet use...