Key Points

1. SCREEN survey found that nearly 6 in 10 young Indians experience negative emotional effects from extended time online.
2. Risks on the internet are more likely to come from people they know than from strangers (37.9% vs 23.4%).
3. The survey included 4,000 young people aged 11 to 30 years, mostly from economically disadvantaged communities.
4. Only 37.1% of respondents said they could effectively use online reporting or moderation tools.
5. 60% of young people reported identifiable negative emotional responses linked to prolonged digital use.
6. Friends (32.8%) and parents (30.2%) emerged as the main sources of support when facing bad or unsafe online experiences.
7. 77.9% of respondents reported household-level smartphone access.
8. Access to computers or laptops showed a stark urban-rural divide: 72.5% in metros compared with just 36.5% in rural areas.