80% of Gen Z Parents Fear Their Kids Will Fall for AI-enhanced Online Threats, yet 37% Give Them Full Autonomy or Lightly Monitor Activity

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SANTA BARBARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct 14, 2025--

Bitwarden, the trusted leader in password, passkey, and secrets management, today announced results from its poll for Cybersecurity Awareness Month. The US study polled more than 1,000 parents with children at home across the ages of 2 to 20. The findings shed light on how parents approach keeping their children cybersecure in an increasingly online culture.

Children today are online earlier than ever, using a range of devices, including tablets, smartphones, gaming devices, and smartwatches. The poll found that children as young as 3-5 are already using the internet, and 42% of parents in this age group say their child has unintentionally shared personal information. Nearly 80% of kids ages 3-12 have their own tablet, making device access nearly universal by early elementary school. While parents are aware of the risks of their child being online, and many admit their kids have already experienced phishing and malware, made unauthorized purchases, or accidentally shared data, consistent action is lagging.

The Gen Z Paradox: Most Concerned Parents, But Take the Least Action

Across all surveyed generations, Gen Z parents have the highest concerns (80%) of their kids falling victim to AI scams, and 98% said they have had conversations with their kids about online safety. However, they remain the least likely to monitor online activity: 37% said they give their child full autonomy or only lightly monitor device use. This lack of oversight correlates with increased incident rates for children and families. Gen Z households reported the highest levels of malware (44%), unauthorized in-app purchases (41%), phishing (40%), and/or unintentional data sharing (36%).

Habits and Tools: Where Parents Fall Short

While concern for children's safety online is at the forefront of conversations, parents' own security practices fall short and can have bigger repercussions. Out of those surveyed, nearly a third (28%) of Gen Z parents admit to sharing passwords verbally or through text or email. According to a previous Bitwarden survey, Gen Z often reuses passwords (72% admitted to doing so), despite 79% acknowledging the risks.

While some Gen Z families do practice secure habits at home, this largely remains the minority.

• 50% use monitoring software or parental controls
• About 4 in 10 families reported using antivirus tools or keeping software up to date
• Fewer than half (42%) use a password manager
• Only 24% of families use a secure browsing tool or VPN, leaving three of four without added protection

Among Gen Z parents specifically, adoption of key defenses lags: more than half do not use a password manager (56%), and nearly two-thirds (64%) report not using a VPN. Just 16% of families overall use a password manager with shared vaults. Among Gen Z parents, that rises to 25%, still leaving 3 out of 4 families without one and creating gaps in how credentials are shared and secured across households.

Parents must model secure behavior to teach their children how to protect themselves online, especially at a time when threats are becoming increasingly difficult to detect due to the rise in generative AI.

AI Scams Heighten Risks For Young Children

With the AI boom accelerating, parents increasingly worry that scams are becoming harder to detect. 78% of parents across all households are concerned about their child falling victim to an AI-enhanced scam, yet nearly half (43%) haven’t talked with their kids about how to spot one. AI-enabled threats are harder to detect because they can mimic familiar voices, craft personalized messages, or generate convincing phishing content. It is important for parents to open up a dialogue with their children about accessing the internet in a safe and responsible manner.

To read through the full report and findings, please click here. For more information about Bitwarden Password Manager, please visit bitwarden.com.

Survey Methodology

This was an online survey of 1,007 parents fielded from August 28 to August 30, 2025. Respondents were from the United States and ranged from having children aged 2 and under to 20+ years old. Parent responses by age range of children: 2 and under (13%), 3-5 years old (21%), 6-9 years old (36%), 10-12 years old (35%), 13-17 years old (53%).

View source version on businesswire.com:https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251014411599/en/

CONTACT: Mike Stolyar

Director of Communications

[email protected]

KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA CALIFORNIA

INDUSTRY KEYWORD: ONLINE PRIVACY SECURITY TECHNOLOGY SOFTWARE NETWORKS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE INTERNET

SOURCE: Bitwarden

Copyright Business Wire 2025.

PUB: 10/14/2025 10:00 AM/DISC: 10/14/2025 09:59 AM

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