A new phenomenon strikes social media: children under the age of 13 record themselves naked in suggestive positions or masturbating in their bedroom or bathrooms. Sometimes they are with friends or a relative the same age. The idea is to upload those videos in their social networks to gain followers and likes without their parents knowing anything.
Being Precocious on Social Media
Early sexualization of teenagers and the superficiality of sex in social media have generated this raging display from the minors.
A society where children associate beauty with a sexual element can lead teenagers of 12 or 13 years of age to an early sexualization, and be perceived as sexual objects; especially because all they want is to be like the adults and be part of their world.
From early 2018, a great number of sexual exploitation from minors was detected in social media in Spain. It was proved that the material came from the said minors.
Nowadays, children from the age of eight show complete use of YouTube, even knowing how to upload videos on the platform, and which pose will give them more likes.
Pedophiles on the Net
Spanish police found out that 110 minors age 13 had produced the material and that they shared it on social networks like YouTube and Twitter, to name a few. In some cases, children identified during the operation said that they were contacted by adults who asked for this kind of material in exchange for various things.
Some parents do not know about these videos or are aware they children have accounts on social networks. Children under the age of 14 cannot open an account on YouTube, making parents responsible for their channel.
It is important that parents supervise the material their children post and that know who they kids are interacting with since there is a new type of crime: grooming. Children may think they are talking with another child when, in actuality, they are talking to an adult who wants to earn their trust so the children pose or produce highly sexualize content.
Social networks change and evolve constantly and, sadly, they can host all kinds of pedophiles waiting to prey on children.
The Innocent Playlist Used by Pedophiles
Not only children producing these videos are in danger, but parents as well. They should filter the audiovisual information posted by their children. This is because many of the videos posted on social media –including material with naked or a semi naked child between ages two and five – can expose their own sons to pedophiles without even realizing it.
Spanish authorities have found lists of videos from innocent minors taken out of context by a pedophile who then changes the original name of the video for a sexualize one.
Social network, YouTube, has implemented measures to avoid sexualized videos from minors.
