S
ocial media companies must not encrypt messages unless they can guarantee they can keep platforms free of illegal content, an inquiry has warned.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Social Media is calling for companies to step up and do more to protect children from online grooming and sexual abuse.
It launched its inquiry into the “disturbing” rise of so-called “self-generated” child sexual abuse material last November.
The cross-party MPs say the Home Office must review legislation to ensure it is as easy as possible for children to have their images removed from the internet.
Self-generated content can include material filmed using webcams, very often in the child’s own room, and then shared online.
The APPG believes it is completely unacceptable for a company to encrypt a service that has many child users
In some cases, children are groomed, deceived or extorted into producing and sharing a sexual image or video of themselves.
The report, Selfie Generation – What’s Behind The Rise Of Self-Generated Indecent Images Of Children?, says the trend “seems to have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 crisis”.
The amount of “self-generated” child sex abuse material recorded by the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) between January and April this year was more than double that detected during the same period in 2020.
Experts believe an increase in the number of offenders exchanging child sex abuse material during lockdowns may stimulate demand beyond the pandemic.
The MPs...
Read Full Story: https://standard.co.uk/news/uk/children-social-media-home-office-safety-mps-b954948.html
Your content is great. However, if any of the content contained herein violates any rights of yours, including those of copyright, please contact us immediately by e-mail at media[@]kissrpr.com.