More harmful and harder to avoid: What New Zealanders are seeing online
Caroline Flora, Chief Censor on Jan. 27, 2026
When it comes to illegal content, the New Zealand public has a great deal of concern about it, but low levels of understanding of what the law says and what they can do about their online experience.
We know from what young people have told us, and now from our inaugural survey of adults, that New Zealanders are encountering extremely harmful and potentially illegal content, whether they seek it out or not.
Our latest survey Online Exposure: Experiences of Extreme or Illegal Content in Aotearoa, shows that seeing extreme or illegal content is a common experience for many New Zealanders. Some experience significant harm from exposure, and many take steps to avoid this content. People told us that extreme or illegal content can be difficult to avoid online, and most think it's a growing problem.
For me, these results are telling. Some of the worst of the worst content is available to those who never wanted to see it. As a community, we are experiencing generational differences – younger audiences encounter more extreme content, and older audiences worry about its impact on their families and communities. But across generations, one thing is clear: people still see this material as harmful and New Zealanders are not desensitised to it.
Female, NZ European, age 65 years and over
We can no longer be queasy about this issue or talk about it indirectly – we must be clear about what this content is and the harm that it can do, because the law makes it clear that there is no room for it in our society. The public will be seeing a lot more from us with clear guidance about the law, descriptions of content and advice for how to keep themselves and their whānau safe.
People’s comments in the survey tell me that there is concern in the community about the availability of this content, there is a general unawareness about its legal status, and people are experiencing harm. This is where we collectively need to do better. It is the role of the Classification Office to inform the New Zealand public about their rights and responsibilities when it comes to content, and we all have a part to play in keeping this content away.
Via our website you can learn about what objectionable content is, how to report it, and where to seek help if you’ve been impacted by something you’ve seen.
Further reading
Read the research report here
Learn about objectionable content
How to report harmful or illegal content
Contact us if you’d like to learn more or be involved: info@classificationoffice.govt.nz
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