About 20 million children aged 12 to 17 - one in five across 21 countries - were sexually exploited by perpetrators using technology such as social media, according to a UN Children's Fund ( UNICEF ) report released on Thursday.
Key points
- Nearly 60 per cent of cases occurred on social media
- Many children do not report abuse
- UNICEF calls for safer platforms and stronger laws
More than 15 million children in this age group were exposed to unwanted sexual content, nine million were asked to engage in sexual conversations or share sexual images against their will and four million had sexual images of themselves shared without their consent.
UNICEF said the total figures are likely much higher.
"The report reveals a painful reality," UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said. "More than 20 million children across the countries studied were subjected to unwanted explicit sexual content or exploitation online, often in the digital spaces where they learn, play and connect with friends."
Exploited on social media
Nearly 60 per cent of all recorded instances of exploitation in the report occurred on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and WhatsApp, and 14 per cent happened on online games, with the platforms' features often used to exploit trust.
Some 38 per cent of children first encountered the perpetrators online, and evidence shows abuse is often facilitated through intentional features that allow perpetrators to hide their identities.
In Montenegro, more than 80 per cent of reported cases involved social media.
Across the 21 countries, 57 per cent of exploitation cases involved perpetrators the children knew, including peers, friends and family.
Exploitation raises risks of self-harm
In interviews with researchers, children who endured sexual exploitation described impacts on their emotional wellbeing, sense of safety and trust in others, including fear, shame, confusion and isolation.
"I didn't know how to react…I felt a little in shock," said a young woman from the Dominican Republic after private images were circulated without her consent at age 14.
Children who experienced technology-aided sexual exploitation were four times more likely to report suicidal thoughts or behaviours and self-harm and reported significantly higher levels of anxiety, according to the analysis.
In Pakistan, the risk of self-harm was more than seven times higher for children who had been exploited.
Unsure where to turn for help
More than 40 per cent of cases of tech-facilitated abuse were never shared with anyone, while fewer than one per cent were reported to authorities.
The most common reason was children not knowing who to tell.
"These experiences cause profound emotional and mental distress," UNICEF chief Ms. Russell said. "Many children suffer in silence, unsure where to turn for help. We cannot look away."
Stakeholders must act
"All of us, including governments and technology companies, must do more to protect children online," Ms. Russell said.
The researchers issued calls for help to prevent abuse:
- Tech companies should include stronger protections for children and improve their reporting systems
- Governments should strengthen accountability and enforcement mechanisms
- Societies should address harmful gender norms that normalise the sexualisation of girls and stigmatise survivors of sexual violence
