Full Report
Ofcom survey finds 18-34s increasingly see life online as bad for society and their mental health Young Brits are souring on the internet, with increasing numbers seeing it as damaging to society and their mental health, according to latest research published by Ofcom.…
Analysis Summary
# Main Topic
A significant shift in perception among UK residents aged 18-34, who increasingly view life online as detrimental to both society and their personal mental health, as documented by recent Ofcom research.
## Key Points
- **Societal Impact Decline:** Only 33% of 18-34 year olds agreed the internet is good for society in June 2025, down from 42% the previous year. This is a steeper decline than for older demographics.
- **Mental Health Deterioration:** For the first time in the surveyed period, more young adults disagreed (35%) than agreed (31%) that being online has a positive effect on their emotional wellbeing.
- **High Usage Continues:** Despite pessimism, this demographic spends an average of 6 hours and 20 minutes daily on personal devices, significantly higher than the all-adult average of 4 hours 30 minutes.
- **Harmful Encounters:** Younger adults reported experiencing potentially harmful online encounters most frequently on Instagram, followed by TikTok (overall, Facebook was the platform where the highest proportion of people encountered such material, though this likelihood increased with age).
- **Algorithmic Influence:** A potential driver for negativity is the increased proportion of online material chosen by algorithms rather than active user selection. 47% of potentially harmful encounters for young adults stemmed from scrolling a feed, compared to 26% for those aged 55 and over.
- **Mitigation Actions:** Young adults are more likely than older groups to actively manage use (disabling notifications, using Do Not Disturb, pausing services, deleting apps). However, they are less likely to report harmful content, often citing minor severity.
## Threat Actors
- Not applicable. The report details general user sentiment and platform interaction, not specific adversarial threat actors or campaigns.
## TTPs
- Not applicable. The findings relate to user experience and platform mechanics rather than specific malicious TTPs.
- *Note on Exposure:* The primary mechanism discussed is **algorithmic content delivery/feed scrolling**, which leads to exposure to potentially harmful material.
## Affected Systems
- **Platforms:** Instagram and TikTok were notably cited for harmful encounters among young adults. Facebook was cited highest overall, but less relevant to the 18-34 cohort's specific higher exposure risks via feeds.
- **Users:** UK adults aged 18-34 (Digital Natives).
## Mitigations
- **User-Managed Controls:** The reported mitigation strategies utilized by the affected group include:
- Disabling notifications.
- Using "Do Not Disturb" settings.
- Pausing the use of services.
- Deleting applications.
- **Regulatory Context:** The report notes Ofcom began enforcing the UK's Online Safety Act shortly after the research period, which aims to improve online safety (although enforcement details are outside the scope of this specific finding).
## Conclusion
The intelligence indicates a significant erosion of trust and perceived well-being linked to internet usage among young Britons, strongly correlated with their exposure patterns (algorithmic feeds) on major social media platforms. While this group is proactively using device controls to manage usage, they are hesitant to report adverse content. Organizations must recognize this public sentiment shift, particularly concerning platform design and content moderation effectiveness on services used heavily by this demographic.