Online harassment of girls is “so common” that some parents think it is “normal”, a study has found.
Online safety charity Internet Matters found that 77% of digital experiences among 13 to 16-year-old girls in the UK were harmful or potentially harmful.
The survey also found that parents “are starting to think that online harassment of girls is normal and even downplaying it.”
Carolyn Bunting, co-executive of the charity, noted that most parents were “doing their best” to support their children, but she feared “we are collectively losing sight of the fact that it is not acceptable offline” Things should not be acceptable online either.”
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Image: iStock
One mother with a 15-year-old daughter told Internet Matters that the “dick pic” was “so standard that it didn’t deserve attention and they just blocked it and moved on.”
She went on to say that her daughter “didn’t tell me that this had become a completely normal thing to happen to teenagers and I don’t think it had a harmful effect on her”.
The mother of another 17-year-old girl said her daughter’s Instagram model account had older men asking to be her “sugar daddy.”
The teen also told the charity she saw sexual comments on the video of two 12-year-old girls, saying: “The whole comment section is weird… they are young girls and fully clothed.”
The study is based on 12 in-depth interviews with teenage girls and parents conducted by BMG Research between November 2023 and January 2024.
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From February: Esther Ghey’s message to tech companies
In its report, Internet Matters calls for a public campaign to “reset expectations of appropriate behavior online” and update statutory guidance Ofcom Reduce the risks faced by women and girls.
Internet Watch Foundation found More than 90% of child sex abuse websites feature “self-generated” images The victim was only three years old.
this Cybersecurity Law – A bill passed last year – requiring online service providers to minimize the reach of illegal and harmful content.
However, the parliamentary committee said it may take some time before the benefits are felt as the law is fully implemented. Delayed to 2026.
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