Child sits at a laptop while an adult holds out a mobile
14 November 2020

Keeping your child safe online

Our safeguarding advice and procedures to help keep your child safe online

The safeguarding of children is World Vision's chief concern.

We work hard to protect the security, privacy and dignity of everyone we work with. Learn how best to keep updated with your child, some of the steps we take to ensure their safety, and how you can help us to protect your sponsored child.

Get in touch with your sponsored child safely

Contact your child through My Sponsorship to ensure their safety and dignity is always preserved. The online platform gives you many opportunities to learn about your child, get updates from, send them messages and arrange to visit your child.

You can find out more about your sponsored child, how your donations are making a difference, and to keep in touch via your online account.

Log in to My Sponsorship

What we ask of you to keep children safe

To help keep your sponsored child safe, we ask you to follow three simple rules:

  1. When you tell family and friends about your child, please don’t share anything that could identify them. This includes their last name, village name or ID number.

    We know that sponsors love to share their experience of sponsoring with family and friends. Please do show them photos and tell them about your child, their interests and hobbies, the country they live in and how your support is helping them. These are all things that we’d encourage you to share! Just limit identifying information for the child's privacy.

  2. You should always send your letters through World Vision, and never include your personal contact details.

  3. You should contact us if your sponsored child, or a member of their family or community, contacts you directly – for example through social media.

    Because privacy is important to us, we discourage sponsored children from contacting their sponsors directly. If your child, or a member of their family or community, contacts you directly – for example through social media – please do not respond. Instead, contact us so that we can make them aware of the risks involved. We will also explain why it’s safer for them to use our own communication channels.

How we help keep children safe

  • We make sure that every country we work in has a protection system in place.
  • We train staff and volunteers in safeguarding.
  • We get permission from parents, guardians and community leaders for children to take part in sponsorship activities.
  • We empower the people we work with to speak out if they feel they’re in danger.
  • We check in regularly with children in our sponsorship programme to see that they’re safe, healthy and happy.
  • We don’t give out any identifying information.
  • We protect the data of everyone we work with.
  • We make sure that digital images can’t be downloaded or copied.
  • We provide safe ways for sponsors to contact their sponsored child through us rather than directly.

Learn more