Monitor children’s use of online apps, parents urged

The Child Safety Organisation (CSO), affiliated with the Sharjah Family and Community Council, has urged parents to keep a closer eye on how children use smartphones, delivery apps and online shopping platforms, saying convenience should never replace family supervision.

In a public awareness message, the organisation said delivery services have become part of everyday family life, helping households manage food orders, shopping and daily needs more easily.

However, it warned that when children use these services on their own, parents need to set clear rules around what they can order, how they pay, and whether they are allowed to receive deliveries at home.

The organisation said some children may use their phones to order food, products, toys or other items without their parents’ knowledge, and may try to receive the delivery themselves when it arrives.

It called on families to pay attention to these daily habits and make sure children understand that online shopping and delivery should not happen without adult knowledge and approval.

The message, the organisation stressed, is not meant to create fear, but to help families respond to the way smart apps have changed children’s behaviour inside the home.

A child may see ordering online as a simple step on a phone, but may not fully understand why they should tell their parents what they are buying, wait for an adult when a delivery arrives, or avoid opening the door to anyone without permission.

Hanadi Saleh Al Yafei, Director General of the Child Safety Organisation, said: “Apps now allow children to make quick decisions that previously passed through the family, such as buying, paying, entering an address and dealing with someone from outside the home. The issue is not only how children use apps, but also what they order or receive, and whether they are given privileges before they have the awareness and experience to manage them safely.”

She added: “Supervision does not mean preventing children from using technology or treating them with suspicion. It means creating safe and clear boundaries between what a child can do independently and what should remain under adult oversight. Delivery and ordering services are part of daily family life, but when children use them, parents should supervise both the order itself and the way it is received.”

Al Yafei said families should treat digital access as a gradual process, not an automatic step.

“At the Child Safety Organisation, we focus on helping families keep pace with these new daily realities. Children need to understand that privacy, payment details, home addresses and digital services are responsibilities that require awareness, maturity and age-appropriate supervision.”

“The safest approach is to introduce children gradually to the digital world, as delaying smartphone use remains one of the most effective ways to protect them and build their digital awareness.”

The organisation called on parents to set clear household rules for children’s use of delivery and online shopping apps.

Any purchase or delivery, it said, should take place with the family’s knowledge and approval, and with a parent or trusted adult present when needed.

It also advised families to review app settings on devices used by children, avoid saving bank card details or enabling quick payment options without safeguards, activate purchase and payment notifications, and use age-appropriate parental control tools.

The organisation also urged parents to establish one clear rule at home: children should not open the door to anyone without permission and supervision, even if the delivery is expected. Children, it said, may not always be able to assess a situation or know when adult intervention is needed.

Parents were also advised to teach children not to share their home address, phone number or personal information through apps or digital conversations without direct family approval.

The organisation said children should understand that just because a platform is easy to use, it does not mean they can act alone or bypass their parents.