Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
It has been reported in news outlets this week that cases of sextortion of children are on the rise. The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) has reported that it has received “191 reports of sextortion” in the first half of this year. This is compared to 30 cases in the same period last year.
“Sextortion” may be a term that parents are unfamiliar with. Therefore, it is vitally important to prevent sextortion, that parents are aware of what it is, how to prevent it and how to educate their children to keep themselves safe online. You can read the Sky News article on sextortion here.
What is “Sextortion”?
The Metropolitan police define “Sextortion” as:
“A form of blackmail. It involves threatening to publish sexual information, photos or videos about someone. This may be to extort money or to force the victim to do something against their will. Photos or recordings are often made without the victim realising or consenting.”
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How children are targeted?
Typically, children are targeted by adults online who trick children into thinking they are speaking to another child, usually of the opposite sex. These adults abusers will target children through social media platforms, developing a relationship with the child and convincing them to send explicit images of themselves.
In the technological age that we are in, a large number of children have an online presence and can have multiple social media accounts on a variety of platforms. New apps, platforms and games appear all the time, all specifically targeting this market and are trying to capture the attention of young people. Many of these new products are designed to be addictive for children. Meaning children are regularly engaged in the use of these products. For adult abusers, these apps, platforms and games will be where they go to identify potentially vulnerable children for sextortion.
Social Media Apps
There are many social media apps that are specifically designed for children to share images. When completing a Digital Safeguarding course as part of my work, we discussed some of these apps and the dangers they pose to young people.
We specifically discussed apps that would create a link between two people’s phones. Meaning that as soon as an image is taken, it will show up on the connected phones screen. This image would appear immediately, without the user needing to authorise or do anything. Therefore, the risk to a young person if they connected their phone to an adult abuser is incredibly high.
Even more popular apps like Snap Chat, which “deletes” images after being sent, can be exploited. Many children fall into the trap of being complacent with this app, believing anything they send cannot be kept without their knowledge. This is because they would receive a notification if the image is screenshotted. However, what children do not consider, is if the receiver of the image used a second phone to take a photo of the original image. The sender would have no idea that the image has been duplicated and could be shared. Again, for an abuser, this is a way into sextorting a child.
The message to take home is that all social media apps can pose a risk to children. With sextortion cases on the rise, it is even more important for parents to be aware of what apps their children are using. Parents should identify what apps are being used, ask yourself how safe is your child using these apps and continue to keep oversight of how your child uses social media apps especially.
How to keep your child safe online?
When thinking about how to keep your child safe online, responsibility can be placed on both the child and the parent. For the child, it is important that they are supported to understand and spot potential risks when they are online. Furthermore, the child also needs to know what to do if they are being targeted, who they report issues to and how to respond.
For parents, oversight is essential. Whilst children may be educated and understand the risks, potential abusers can still manipulate vulnerable children. Therefore, as a parent it is important that you provide continuous oversight of what apps your child is using, what are they using the apps for and have regular conversations around their activity online. Educating yourself around the risks of your child being online can be very useful.
There are a number of resources and websites available for parents to educate themselves and their children. I have also written other posts specifically focused on these topics. I have listed some of these resources and posts below:
Keeping Children Safe Online – NSPCC
6 Tips to Keep Your Child Safe Online
What Are the Challenges Parents/Children Face When Using Social Media?
(“My Baby Memories” – Affiliate Link)
What to do if your child has been targeted?
If your child has been targeted by an abuser for sextortion, the following advice is given by the Metropolitan Police:
- Don’t panic, help and support is available.
- Don’t pay.
- Save the evidence: Take screenshots. Save messages and images. Collect URL links to where the information is being shared online.
- Report it to social media companies if communication happened on these channels. For example, Facebook or Instagram.
- Report it to your internet service provider.
- Block all communication with the person targeting you.
- Most social media sites have rules against sharing intimate content without consent. You should be able to get the material removed.
In addition to the above, it is also important to report any concerns around sextortion to the police.
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