Stark differences in the online lives of men and women in the UK are today revealed in Ofcom’s annual report into the nation’s digital habits.
Across all adult age groups, women are spending more time online – on smartphones, tablets and computers – than men - clocking up an extra 33 minutes more each day in May 2024 on average at 4 hours 36 minutes, compared to 4 hours 3 minutes.

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From December 2024, services will need to act to comply with their duties.

Ofcom will be publishing Codes of Practice and guidance on how in scope companies can comply with their duties. If you provide an online service, there are actions you must take when duties come into force.

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As in all Ofcom's reports, Ofcom provides detail about different groups of children, highlighting age, socioeconomic background and gender wherever it is useful or possible to do so.

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When Ofcom first commissioned this longitudinal study 10 years ago, several of the children in this year’s research weren’t yet born. It was 2014, later dubbed the “year of the selfie”1 in the wake of that year’s icebucket challenge2, the #nomakeupselfie3 and the “selfie that broke Twitter”. A year of laughs, cold-water gasps, attempts at authenticity and a group of famous people who took their own picture at the Oscars.

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Nearly a quarter of UK five-to-seven-year-olds now have their own smartphone, Ofcom research suggests.

Social media use also rose in the age group over last year with nearly two in five using messaging service WhatsApp, despite its minimum age of 13.

The communications regulator warned parental enforcement of rules "appeared to be diminishing."

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This report looks at media use, attitudes and understanding among children aged 3-17. It also includes findings on parents’ views about their children’s media use, and how parents of children aged 3-17 monitor and manage their children’s online activity.

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iNEQE's brief and clear summary of the report findings is here