BGiven the recent explosion of right-wing extremist violence against immigrants across the UK, some parents may be wondering what their children are doing with their mobile phones.

Such concerns may be heightened following the sighting of children and teenagers during the recent far-right riots in the UK earlier this month.

Meanwhile, exclusive polling by YouGov suggests that around a quarter of young men share self-proclaimed misogynist Andrew Tate’s views on the treatment of women.

An independent investigation by leading anti-fascism organisation Hope not Hate found that more young men in the UK have seen the influencer’s material than have heard of former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

For parents who are worried that their child is drifting into the far-right, or who would like to learn more about the telltale signs, The Independent spoke to experts about what to look out for.

Behavioral signs you should look out for

Nigel Bromage, a reformed neo-Nazi who was active in far-right groups for two decades and now runs a deradicalisation charity, said people drawn into extremist movements can act in “many different ways”, but gave some examples to look out for.

“They isolate themselves from family and friends and have a new circle of friends that no one knows,” added Bromage, director of Exit Hate Trust, which helps people who want to leave far-right groups. He also said people should be wary of “speaking like you’ve learned it by heart, spending more time online, being unwilling to discuss their views – they’re always right.”

Other signs include children displaying “a sudden disrespectful attitude towards others” and “talking about us and them”, as well as “a general increase in anger and frustration towards the media, politicians and various communities”.

Mr Bromage also referred to “increasing secrecy, particularly in relation to internet use” and “new tattoos with numbers or symbols never seen before”.

He added: “For young people, this can be, for example, drawings in books or speeches in support of people and groups who are anti-Islamic or racist.”

Anne Craanen, senior research and policy manager at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, added that signs to look out for include children no longer engaging in hobbies they once enjoyed.

The danger is twofold – one for society and one for the child. The child can be taken advantage of and exploited. The danger for society is increasing division.

Anne Craanen

“This is accompanied by a loss of identity,” added Ms Craanen, whose organisation campaigns against extremism and disinformation. “Their identity merges with a certain ideology, such as the extreme right.”

She said parents should also make sure their children do not engage in “othering.” She explained that extremism is about an “ingroup” and an “outgroup,” and that those who reject one’s views are made into the enemy.

Emotional signs to look out for

Ms Craanen noted that a child radicalised in the extreme right may behave “withdrawn” and “isolated” and adopt a more “black and white” approach to sensitive issues.

Lucy*, whose 14-year-old son was cornered because she thought he was playing video games, warned that a telltale sign would be if your child started spending a lot of time in his room.

“If they start to become interested in political issues or current events and their opinions seem a little off, you should pay attention again,” she added.

“When their attitude starts to change, I now know that it can be a little difficult because they change during the teenage years anyway. But if they become very disrespectful, very irritable, very angry, very argumentative, that’s another sign.”

Lucy works for the Exit Hate Trust, providing training and support to parents whose children have been radicalised, and urges parents to keep an eye on who their children follow on social media.

“Are they constantly talking about an individual or a group? And if that’s the case, just do a little research into which group it is,” she added.

How to escalate

Asked about the danger that could arise from the escalation of right-wing extremist activities among children, Ms Craanen said it was difficult to predict when an individual would put his radical ideas into action.

“The danger is twofold – one for society and one for the child,” she added. “The child can be taken advantage of and exploited. The danger for society is one of increasing division and when minors are involved in terrorist activities it has a greater emotional and societal impact – it is shocking when children are drawn into the far right and other extremist ideologies.”

From frustration to loud statements, political engagement to exclusion from society and the adoption of extremist ideologies that promote violence and hatred

Nigel Bromage

She noted that during recent right-wing extremist unrest, children had been arrested and charged with violent unrest.

“With the Online Safety Act, we are now seeing the first crimes for inciting online hatred and the first arrests of people for it. So far only adults have been arrested, so it remains to be seen how the law can be enforced for children,” added Ms Craanen.

“The law is intended to protect children online. Platforms must take additional protective measures if they know that children are active on their platform. This is intended to protect children from finding illegal or harmful content online. This includes right-wing extremist material and channels that abuse children.”

Bromage warned that individuals could very quickly become “active supporters” of the far right, “leading them to become vocal out of frustration, become politically active or even isolate themselves from society and adopt extremist ideologies that promote violence and hatred.”

He added that young people “could get lost on the internet, be manipulated and abused by the far right by downloading manuals that could lead to arrest due to the extremist and terrorist nature of the content they contain.”