Protections for teens on Snapchat have been slow coming and lacking features of other social media competitors.¹

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Last week Snap Inc., Snapchat’s parent company, released a group of new features targeting 13-17 year olds on the platform. These new features are designed to create a “more age-appropriate viewing experience.”²

But what draws teens, drug dealers³, and those looking to sexually exploit teens to Snapchat?

The Myth of Security on Snapchat

Snapchat’s primary appeal is its perceived security.

Disappearing messages and images, combined with the gamification of “snap streaks,” makes the platform appealing to teens.

The former is also what draws people with untoward intent to Snapchat. The promise of being able to disappear.

The Anatomy of a Snap

Users can send texts, images from their camera roll, and images/videos taken with the app, known as snaps, within a conversation.

Unless texts, images, or snaps are saved to the chat, they disappear after viewing, or within 24 hours. Further, snaps can be set to disappear immediately after viewing, with the ability to view them a second time, or to be retained if the receiver saves the snap.

However, users can retain messages by saving them to the chat, taking a screenshot, or saving them to camera roll. The last two options will send a notification so the sender knows what’s happening with the content.

On the other hand, if a user uses a third-party application, not the built-in screenshot method, to record the screen, no notification will be sent. I bring this up to reinforce the fact that things that happen online can last forever.

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See the latest research on criminality related to social media:

• Social Anxiety and Loneliness in Online Solicitation Offenders

See more articles related to social media

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What are the New Features Protecting Teens on Snapchat?

• Safer Contact
  • In-App Warnings
    • A warning pops up if a teen adds someone who isn’t in their phone’s contacts and they don’t share enough mutuals with.
  • Stronger Friending Protections
    • Higher number of mutual friends before Snapchat recommends someone. As well as requiring a higher number of mutuals before allowing a friend request to happen.
• New Strike System for Accounts Promoting Age-Inappropriate Content
  • Content promoted by media organizations, verified creators, and random users is vetted to ensure age appropriateness. Violations result in content, then accounts being removed.
• Education About Common Online Risks
  • Informational productions created in conjunction with the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) about:
    • Catfishing
    • Financial sextortion
    • Taking and sharing explicit images
    • And more

Accessible via parents.snapchat.com, a handy family center walks parents through the process of setting up an account for themselves and their children with both text and videos.

However, the protections offered are predicated on parents setting up a child’s account. If your child created an account without your knowledge, you’re out of luck.

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If you’re unfamiliar with sextortion, check out Dr. Jen’s article How to Protect Your Child from Sextortion.

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How do Other Social Media Apps Protect Teens?

YouTube and TikTok are the most used apps by teens. Occupying spots three and four are Instagram and Snapchat.⁴

I’ll quickly eliminate YouTube and TikTok. Because the former doesn’t have messaging, and the latter has limited messaging capabilities.

Instagram allows users to send text, pictures, and videos and has taken extra steps in utilizing AI to:

• Identify problematic accounts⁵
• Blur images that may contain “sensitive media”⁶

Both of these technologies are available to Snapchat, but aren’t utilized.

Protecting teens on Snapchat, particularly young girls, from unsolicited explicit images should be paramount.

“…adolescents often underestimate risks and perceive greater potential benefits from risky behavior.”

Smith, Chein, and Steinberg, 2014

Protecting Teens on Snapchat is Secondary to Profits

There is a fundamental disconnect between management and reality about how Snapchat is used. Beyond understanding its usage, particularly teens on Snapchat, executives don’t understand how users get their apps. When called before congress, Snap’s executives weren’t able to answer why their app is rated differently between devices and app stores.⁷

Furthermore, the measures designed to save teens from themselves are invasive. The in-app warnings require teens share their contact list with Snapchat. While this is an opt-in feature, it is still an invasion of privacy.

Matters that concern privacy should always be opt-in, especially for teens.

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Learn why it’s important for everyone, especially teens, to be able to control their online experiences. Dick Pic Culture: How do Teenage Girls Navigate it?

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Using AI for Fun and Profit

An artificial intelligence was released earlier this year, called “My AI.” It was marked for wide-release to all Snapchat accounts on February 27.

A journalist at the Washington Post created an account posing as a thirteen year old. The artificial intelligence engaged in discussions about sexual relationships and alcohol with that user.

Contrary to their guidelines, My AI wasn’t adjusted for age-appropriateness. Consequently, teens on Snapchat are now being exposed to explicit talk from peers, older people, and machines.

Again, Snap Inc seems more interested in “moving fast and breaking things” to capitalize on tech buzz than ensuring the safety of teens on Snapchat.

Separating Moral Panic from Reality to Protect Your Teens on Snapchat

Even though I’m not a fan of the business model of monetizing users against their will, I do believe that Snapchat can be a valuable outlet for teens.

Teens need to feel a sense of security and privacy to talk to their friends. They also need to be included in the now-integral to life social media experience.

But this doesn’t change the fact that teenagers are prone to taking risks without considering consequences.⁸ Fostering healthy emotional development starts at home.

Creating an open environment to discuss concerns and experiences starts long before your child asks for Snapchat. Put in the work as a parent, build mutual trust.

After you’ve formed that foundation, it’s much easier to give them freedom to explore safely.

And with your oversight.

TL/DR

• Snapchat needs to do more to protect teens and be a better steward of social media.
• Parents need to create an environment that fosters mutual trust.
• Teens need to feel free to explore and secure enough to ask for advice.
• Parents can visit parents.snapchat.com for more information about how Snapchat is helping them to protect their children.

References

1. Snap’s Dangerous New AI Risks Exposing Children to Sexual Exploitation and Abuse EndSexualExploitation.org ↩︎
2. Introducing New Safeguards to Protect our Community values.snap.com ↩︎
3. When one pill kills NBCNews.com ↩︎
4. Teens and social media: Key findings from Pew Research Center surveys PewResearch.org ↩︎
5. What’s Being Done to Protect Teens on Instagram and Messenger? DrJensRecoveryReadings.com ↩︎
6. Updates to the Sensitive Content Control about.instagram.com ↩︎
7. YouTube and Snapchat were asked to defend their apps’ age ratings in Senate hearing TechCrunch.com ↩︎
8. The Current Landscape of Adolescent Risk Behavior National Library of Medicine www.NCBI.NLM.NIH.gov ↩︎

Are you a professional looking to stay up-to-date with the latest information on, sex addiction, trauma, and mental health news and research? Or maybe you’re looking for continuing education courses? stay up-to-date with all of Dr. Jen’s work through her practice’s newsletter!

For an in-depth guide on talking to your adolescents about cybersex and pornography, check out Dr. Jen’s book. Amazon | BookBaby

Have you found yourself in legal trouble due to your sexual behavior? Seek assistance before the court mandates it, with Sexual Addiction Treatment Services.

Do you feel your sexual behavior, or that of someone you love, is out of control? consult with a professional.

The post New Efforts to Protect Teens on Snapchat first appeared on Dr. Jen's Recovery Readings.

Yesterday, the FBI released a statement warning about the dangers and rising rates of online extortion of children. This story has blown up all over the national news. While I am happy to see this issue get the attention it deserves, I feel as though the FBI is a little late in warning about sextortion.

This post contains affiliate links. The author or blog owner may earn a commission if you make a purchase using these links.

In 2016, I wrote the now outdated book, The New Age of Sex Education:  How to talk to your teen about cybersex and pornography in the digital age. Children being sextorted was an issue then, though not as common as now. 

How does this Happen?

Children (and adults for that matter) are online all the time. 

This may be social media such as Instagram, Snapchat, or TikTok. They are posting content, talking to people, and generally doing what kids do.  While these apps can be a great source of connection and information, there is always a dark side.   

If someone’s account is not set to private, anyone can contact you. The individuals that are going to groom, manipulate or extort someone will follow, comment or direct message (DM). 

The relationship grows. It often moves to a chat app like Kik and where the victim will send pictures of themselves. These can be anything from simply sexy to overtly sexual images or videos. 

Not everyone who does this is looking to extort the child. Many individuals who are engaging in this behavior are sexually offending and with no financial motivation.

Do you believe your sexual behaviors are compulsive or harmful to you or others? Then you should take the CSBD-19 free, validated self-assessment tool.

The Demand

If the motivation of the individual is extortion, very quickly after receiving a video or image, there is an extortion demand. They ask for money; we often see the number $7500 being asked of our clients. 

If the money is not paid, the threat is that the extorter will then post and share the sexual images to the child’s social media accounts, send to parents, family members, friends, etc. 

We have had many adult clients who have had this happen and are so ashamed that they simply pay the money and hope it goes away. 

If they do not pay the money, the threats can escalate and be very harassed. 

Ultimately, sometimes the person’s images end up being posted.   

When the victim of extortion is a minor, the shame and embarrassment often induce them to stay silent. Unlike adult victims who may have access to money, most minor victims do not which leaves them more vulnerable. 

The mental health impacts of this victimization are very serious, and the FBI reported that many of the victims have turned to suicide.   

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Learn why it’s important for everyone, especially teens, to be able to control their online experiences. Dick Pic Culture: How do Teenage Girls Navigate it?

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What can a parent do to prevent sextortion?

1. The first thing to do is to talk to your child about the internet, privacy and who they are talking to online. 
   • Online communication are part of their cultural norm. We are not going to stop it, so children need to be informed about risk.
2. Parents need to know what their children are doing online and on their phone. 
   • Know what apps they are using. 
   • Know whether they have social media accounts. 
   • Be aware of hidden social media accounts that kids often make and keep from their parents.
3. Parents need to be open, non-shaming and available to talk about sex, sex education and sexuality with their children. 
   • Do not assume that they are too young to learn about digital sexuality. 
   • Do not assume that school will take care of this education. 
   • Many parents are uncomfortable talking about sex in general and even more so with their children. Get educated, acknowledge that the talks are awkward and have them with your children anyway. And have them often. This creates an environment where your child will feel more comfortable coming to you if there is an issue.

If you or your child are the victim of this type of crime, please contact your local police department or the FBI. 

If you are seeking counseling for issues related to this type of victimization, please contact our office at www.sexualaddictiontreatmentservices.com or 610-844-7180.

For an in-depth guide on talking to your adolescents about cybersex and pornography, check out Dr. Jen’s book. Amazon | BookBaby

Do you feel your sexual behavior, or that of someone you love, is out of control? consult with a professional.

The post How to Protect Your Child from Sextortion first appeared on Dr. Jen's Recovery Readings.

A study recently published online in the Telematics and Informatics journal brought to light the problems of webcam trolls and how they can victimize children on chat sites.

First, let’s talk about webcam trolls. Many people are likely familiar with the term troll that is often used for people who post disruptive, mean, or harmful communication on the websites or social media sites of others. It is not uncommon to see a comment in the news about some celebrity replying to a troll who posted something on their social media site that is perhaps fat shaming, sexist, racist, homophobic etc. While this is becoming a relatively common occurrence, webcam trolls are not as well known.

A webcam troll is someone who engages in trolling in online forums, like the site Chatroulette. They may show pre-recorded video loops instead of live time video. Webcam trolls also may phish for information on these sites.

How do webcam trolls go after children? The answer is through initiating contact, often under false pretenses, and requesting erotic video chatting. The troll is often using a fake identity and a video loop. Through the chat process, the child is convinced to expose themselves on the cam or engage in sex acts on the cam for the other person. The person on the other end of the chat will record the sessions and they can be used for blackmail at a later time. The children are often threatened with exposure to peers and parents. Adults who are webcam trolled are frequently extorted for money. Children are frequently blackmailed for more erotic content.

When this type of webcam trolling occurs, children do not usually go to their parents to tell them what has happened. The children are often scared and don’t want to face the shame of telling their parents what they have done online with a stranger.

We may think that these types of things only happen on chat sites that have a reputation for being sexual or nefarious. However, this study shares the case of an 11 year old child who was playing Minecraft online. Anyone who is aware in our world knows that Minecraft is a video game that is insanely popular with kids. Part of playing this game is the ability to chat with others. In this particular case, the online chat friendship included simulated sex acts. When the online friendship went bad, the other child posted these videos online for the public to see.

The moral of this particular case is to not assume that your child is not at risk because they are not on chat sites. If they are video gaming online, they are open to this practice.

While webcam trolling does not happen frequently, it does occur. The authors suggest that prevention measures be taken such as not sharing personal data online as well as technically safeguarding the computer. They also suggest that if a person is engaging in chat with someone, they ask them to write a particular message on a piece of paper and show it in the web cam. This practice will help distinguish video loops from real people. Our long term suggestion is that computers and devices with webcam ability should always be used in a public part of the house, not in a child’s bedroom

As always, discussion and awareness help prevention as well. Talk to your child about web cam trolling.

For more information on children and cybersex risk please see our page The New Age of Sex Education.

Kopecky, K. (2016) Misuse of web cameras to manipulate children within the so called webcam trolling. Telematics and Informatics, 33, 1-7

The post Webcam Trolling and Children first appeared on Dr. Jen's Recovery Readings.