What is Sexting
Sexting is the term for sending intimate or sexually explicit photos via a mobile phone and it’s becoming increasingly common among teenagers in the UK.
Pictures could range from girls posing in their underwear to boys exposing their bodies or carrying out a sexual act.
Often they are sent between boyfriend and girlfriend but sometimes they are used for a more sinister means, in order to cyberbully or groom a young person.
For example, a picture your child has taken on his or her phone, could be forwarded to dozens of other children in their school, without their permission. This is very likely to cause them hurt and distress.
How common is it?
A survey by the Beatbullying website – www.beatbullying.org - in 2009 found 38% of 11-18 year olds had received a sexually explicit or distressing image via a text or email.
More than half of those receiving a sexual image were sent it to their phone.
Seven in 10 knew the person who sent the message with 45% coming from a friend, and nearly a quarter from a boyfriend or girlfriend.
Is it illegal?
Publishing a picture online of a sexual nature of a child under 18, or sending it via a mobile phone, is technically illegal. This description extends to photos where the person may simply be dressed provocatively or in their underwear.
What about social networks?
Although sexting is generally related to mobile phones, the growth of social networks such as Facebook, Bebo and MySpace mean young people have many places where they can post and share images online.
Parents should always set up their own account and be friends with their children on social networks to keep an eye on what is published on their profile.
Sexting and cyberbullying
There have been cases in the past of children getting very depressed or suffering from severe anxiety because of sexting getting out of hand.
This certainly isn’t the norm, but it is very easy for digital pictures to spread because of the technology we use every day.
If these images end up in the wrong hands, the embarrassment caused can lead to huge amounts of distress.
What do I do about it?
It is important to talk to your children about sexting and the risks involved.
The answer is not to take away their mobile phone or check their messages every five minutes.
Explain to your youngsters the potential problems and how they could be breaking the law if those featured in the pictures are under 18 and in a sexual pose and they forward them on.
Find out why they think it is ok to send their friends, and even strangers, images such as these, and explain why it is not something they should be doing.
Make them realise they should never ever send a sexting image to someone they don’t know, who they may only have met online in a chatroom or via a social network.
Even if the stranger says they are another teenager, they could be an adult pretending to be younger to gain sexual images, or groom your child for sexual abuse.
Watch out for signs of distress when your child receives a text message, in case they are being cyberbullied. Read our article on cyber bullying for more about the risks and further advice.
Listen to the expert
Emma –Jane Cross, chief executive of Beatbullying, says: “We don’t want to inhibit young people in their exploration of sexuality, but it is important that parents and schools are aware that sexting is a significant issue amongst our children and young people, so together we can act to stop this kind of behaviour before it escalates into something far more problematic.”
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