Serbia's Children Online: 95% Use Phones Daily, 3 in 4 See Hate Speech

Almost all children in Serbia go online by mobile phone every day, and about three in four have encountered hate speech online in the past year, according to the Serbian results of the international EU Kids Online study presented in Belgrade on Wednesday, 11 November. Researchers from the University of Belgrade's faculties of philology and philosophy surveyed 1,993 pupils aged 11 to 17 in 37 primary and 27 secondary schools in October 2025.

Phones, computers and AI

Some 95% of children in Serbia use a mobile phone daily to go online, compared with 87% across the 19 countries in the study. Use of laptops and desktop computers fell from 43% in 2018 to 28%. Generative AI tools are widely used, mostly for learning and homework, and about a fifth of children across the study use them for health or personal advice. Pupils rated their own digital skills at 3.6 out of 5, but only 20% answered more than four of six knowledge questions correctly; skills such as judging information and understanding algorithms were the weakest.

Hate speech and harmful content

Exposure to hate speech rose to about three quarters of children from 45% in the previous Serbian cycle. Across the 19 countries, the share seeing hate messages at least monthly ranged from 15% in Ireland to 40% in Serbia. Two thirds of Serbian pupils have come across conspiracy theories, and about half saw violent images or content about self-harm. One in five received a sexual message in the past year; among girls who did, 46% got it from strangers. Only about half of children say they feel safe online, and 19% find it hard to talk to parents about upsetting experiences.

Privacy and what comes next

More than half of the pupils consider it normal for state bodies to use app and website data to make decisions about people, which researchers linked to weak education on digital privacy. At the same time, 62% worry that apps share their data without consent. The Serbian survey was supported by the OSCE Mission to Serbia, under an EU-funded project, and by UNDP. A representative of the EU Delegation pointed to the European Commission's proposed rules to strengthen protection of minors on digital platforms, while UNDP called for more support for teachers and evidence-based policy.