Katie Piper Reveals Scary Online Incident Involving Her Daughter on This Morning
During a chat with Alison Hammond and Joel Dommett, Katie Piper shared a frightening experience involving her daughter, Belle Elizabeth, who unknowingly interacted with an adult on an online game.
The Loose Women panelist, 40, was a guest on ITV’s This Morning on Tuesday, July 23. During her appearance, Katie discussed her support for a campaign launched by Virgin Media O2 and Internet Matters called “Find the Right Words,” which aims to help parents talk to their children about staying safe online.
Katie revealed that her 10-year-old daughter had nearly been groomed by an adult pretending to be a YouTuber Belle admired. “I thought I was quite savvy because I go on social media all the time, I consider myself young at 40. So I thought I was safeguarding her,” she recalled, told The Mirror.
Despite her precautions, danger struck unexpectedly: “She was on an online game where I’d disabled the online chat feature and another player commented on her score and congratulated her. They had the username of a YouTuber she loved. She’s only 10, so she got really excited because she thought she was talking to one of her heroes. But the conversation quickly escalated, and it was actually an adult.”
Thankfully, Belle made the right move: “She shut the device down, came and spoke to me, which I’m really grateful for.” In other recent news, Katie had to take a break from Katie Piper’s Breakfast Show on ITV in June 2024 following an “unexpected medical procedure.” Earlier that month, Katie informed her followers on social media that she was undergoing another eye operation, as a result of the horrific 2008 acid attack.
She continues to attend hospital appointments for skin grafts and eye procedures. Katie had posted on Instagram at the time, “I’m not going to be on my breakfast show this weekend as I’ve had to have an unexpected medical procedure. All is well, and I hope after some rest I’ll be back in the hot seat next weekend!”
Unfortunately, a spokesperson later announced that Katie had a severe reaction to the operation, leaving her feeling quite unwell. “Much as she’d love to be back on the sofa on Saturday, at the moment it’s just not realistic, and she acknowledges this. She is concentrating on her recovery so that she can be back to her best as soon as possible. ITV has been really understanding and has said to her that she should take all the time she needs before coming back.” Katie’s candid sharing of her daughter’s experience underscores the importance of internet safety and vigilance, highlighting the real risks children face online.