Confined and isolated in their bedrooms for weeks, young boys and girls are falling prey to online blackmailers.
By Stéphane Kovacs.
Sexual blackmail via webcam, «ficha» accounts (showing off in slang) or «revenge porn»... These sordid practices are nothing new, but with people having more time on their hands due to lockdown, they are proliferating on social media. «Unfortunately, when people are bored, they often find ways to harm others., laments Justine Atlan, director of the e-Enfance association. The impact is all the greater on the victim because she is now isolated from her friends.»
These digital attacks target young girls in particular, although boys are not spared. They have already led to one suicide, that of a 16-year-old high school girl in Le Havre, who jumped out of a window on 1first April, after «photos have been circulating», his mother told the website Actu76.
«Stop Fisha»
«This period poses even greater risks for children and teenagers who are overexposed to screens, often alone with their smartphones, isolated in their bedrooms,» warns e-Enfance., which manages Net Ecoute, an anonymous and free platform providing support to victims of harassment. This risk is even apparent in online classes, «where incidents and intrusions (hate speech, sharing pornographic links) are not uncommon». The association calls for particular attention to be paid to younger children, who may engage in risky behaviour (dangerous challenges such as Blue Whale or Momo Challenge, visiting websites that promote anorexia, sharing suicidal thoughts).
Since the start of lockdown, these phenomena have exploded. Calls received by the toll-free number Net Listening 3018 rose sharply (an increase of nearly 30% in 2013) and reports to platforms doubled. «The victims of sexual blackmail are becoming increasingly numerous and younger!, Justine Atlan is moved. There has been a recent surge (+50%) in webcam scams, which mainly affect boys, some of whom are as young as 14.. Among the platforms that are frequently reported are Hangouts, Instagram and Snapchat.».
