Cyberbullying, porn ... How to fight against overexposure of teens

• School bullying, which today takes place mainly online, affects more and more adolescents.

• Parents, little aware of the uses and potential dangers of social networks, are often overwhelmed and find it difficult to support their children in distress.

• “One in four parents (25%) feel poorly informed about how to protect their child from the dangers of the Internet and do not feel they know how to protect their child in case they are concerned by cyberstalking”, indicates a study carried out by Kaspersky France-IFop on the occasion, this Thursday, of the International Day against online violence and bullying in schools.

Uploading embarrassing photos or videos, creating false profiles, insulting messages, spreading rumors, inciting suicide ... Cyberbullying among young people has continued to grow in recent years, amplified by the periods of confinement imposed by the crisis sanitary. Dramatic stories involving children and teens are also on the rise, such as the recent suicide of 14-year-old Dinah, who hanged herself in early October after being cyber-harassed by schoolmates for several years.

For child protection associations, cyberviolence is a real scourge for young people today.

Parents, little aware of the uses and potential dangers of social networks, are unfortunately often overwhelmed and find it difficult to support their children in distress.

According to a Kaspersky France-Ifop * study carried out among parents of students in elementary school and college, on the occasion this Thursday of the International Day against online violence and bullying in schools , one in four parents would not know how to help their child in the event of cyberstalking.

Entering college as a “tipping point”

Almost 60% of parents of students in 1st to 3rd grade admit that their child has already been exposed to violent, shocking or pornographic images. “From this perspective, entering college is a tipping point. Exposure to violent content goes from 39% to 61% between elementary school and college, and from 18% to 43% for pornographic content, ”reveals the study. “As the age requested for registration on social or video sharing platforms is not verified, children often register very early and without telling their parents. Or worse, use the account of the latter, ”commented Steph Draperi and Clara Foucher, members of the“ awareness ”working group of the Circle of Women in Cybersecurity (Cefcys).

More than three quarters of parents (76%) also state that their child attending college is registered on at least one social network.

The most popular being unsurprisingly Snapchat (34% have a child registered, including 7% of parents who disapprove) and TikTok (33%, including 12% who disapprove).

"Networks oriented" festive videos "like Snapchat or TikTok are popular with young children and adolescents, not to mention WhatsApp, which makes it very easy to keep the video and audio exchanges of participants.

This poses a risk of harassment such as respect for personal data in the long term in the event of disputes between adolescents, ”add Steph Draperi and Clara Foucher.

"Parents who quickly feel helpless"

This overexposure goes hand in hand with the increase in the risk of cyberstalking: 21% of parents of college students know that their child or one of his comrades has already been harassed online. Among these young people, it is the girls who are more confronted with this phenomenon (25% against 19% of boys). “With the proliferation of digital uses, children are overexposed to cyberthreats: harassment, blackmail, pornography, scams, sordid challenges, disinformation, recruitment…

This sad reality can have significant and sometimes even traumatic consequences on this often fragile population. Hence a necessary awareness of the risks engendered by the digital sphere and education in good practices, ”analyzes Amandine Del Amo, project manager at Action contre la cybermalveillance (cybermalveillance.gouv.fr).

In a context where online violence is more and more numerous, parents quickly feel helpless. They are thus 48% to specify that the use of digital technology is a source of conflict with their child, thus creating a bad family climate. Almost one in two parents (47%) also say that their child is much less sociable since they have a smartphone, and 55% that they have mastered this tool better than they are. "As a result, one in four parents (25%) feels poorly informed about how to protect their child from Internet dangers and does not feel they know how to protect them in case they are concerned by cyberstalking", indicates the study.

Several systems have been put in place in recent months to train parents in good digital practices.

In partnership with the associations e-Enfance, Génération Numérique and Unaf (National Union of Family Associations), Facebook and Instagram have notably launched the “Connected Parents Club” to help and educate parents on all digital issues.

A report published last year by the Modem deputy of Finistère Erwan Balanant also recommended training parents in good digital practices with the distribution of a specific "booklet".

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• By the Web

• Youth

• Snapchat

• Teenager

• Social networks

• TikTok

• School harassment

• Insult

• Porn

• Threatens

• Violence

• Cyber ​​harassment