Behind the screen: how online harm and AI created content affect bullying and friendships

Published in February 2026, The impact of harmful online content on children uses real-world counselling data from Childline and the NSPCC Helpline to understand the kinds of content that trouble children and how these experiences affect their social lives.

While the briefing covers many aspects of harmful content, it makes clear that bullying remains a central concern, often occurring within peer groups and shaping children’s sense of self and trust in their relationships.

Bullying still a significant part of children’s online experience

Between April 2024 and March 2025, Childline delivered:

• Almost 700 sessions where online bullying was the main concern.
• NSPCC Helpline handled around 100 contacts related to online bullying.

Children told counsellors about intentional targeting and harassment online, mainly in messaging apps and social media, and often by people they knew, including school peers.

Harmful content that damages relationships

The briefing highlights how online harm doesn’t just come from strangers. Children described:

• Messages and comments being manipulated or edited and then shared to spread lies about them.
• Deepfake-style images and videos created using AI tools being used in ways that felt threatening, embarrassing or isolating.

These experiences go beyond simple teasing or screenshots, they actively shape how children feel others see them, and whether they feel understood, backed up or trusted by peers.

For some young people, the hurt came not just from what was said but how quickly it spread and who was involved. They described feeling betrayed when people they considered friends either shared harmful content or failed to stand up for them.

The role of AI created content in online harm

Although the report is not primarily about artificial intelligence, it does note that:

• AI tools have made it easier to create realistic deepfake images and videos.
• Some young people felt reluctant to report or talk about this content because they feared it would be shared further or misinterpreted.

This means that technologies that can be fun or useful are also shaping the ways in which bullying plays out, making harmful content more believable and harder for children to manage or challenge.

Harmful content and relationships beyond bullying

The briefing also shows that exposure to other kinds of harmful content, such as hate content, stereotyping or discriminatory material, can strain friendships, spark arguments or create rifts between young people. Some described disagreements with friends over harmful content they had seen or shared.

Why this matters for anti-bullying work

These insights underline that online bullying today is relational and deeply social:

• Harmful content often comes from people children know.
• Its effects ripple through friendship groups.
• Trust and self confidence can be damaged just as much as safety.

Addressing bullying therefore requires a strong focus on healthy relationships, peer support, and helping children talk about what is happening online and offline.

At the Anti-Bullying Alliance, we know that prevention work must reflect the real ways children interact online, how technology is changing those interactions, and how harm can flow from one person to many within a peer group.