More young people sharing nude images online, warn gardaí
Although social media companies can normally remove an image within three days, in reality, once a young boy or girl sends an intimate image, it becomes 'completely uncontrollable'. File Picture: Alamy/PA
There has been an alarming rise in young people engaged in sharing intimate or nude images, gardaí have said.
The Garda National Protective Services Bureau has warned parents to become more vigilant about what their children are doing on mobile phones.
Speaking to the , the bureau's Detective Superintendent Ian Lackey said parental responsibility has to play a role in what young people are sending, as it is difficult to get the message across to teens of the dangers it can pose.
Once a young boy or girl sends an intimate image it becomes “completely uncontrollable", he said, as screenshots can then be taken and the image can be shared widely with others.
Social media companies can normally remove an image within three days, but often the damage is already done.
“Parents should be asking if they know exactly what their child is doing on their phone," said Superintendent Lackey.
"We’re not the parental police, but parental responsibility has to come into it in terms of not being afraid to ask them what they’re doing on their phones and apps and that can get harder the older they get, I appreciate that.”
He said parents are absolutely shocked when officers arrive at their door to inform them that their child has sent an image, but he said gardaí are there to support parents and give advice on potentially getting the image removed if it appears online.
“In a lot of those cases, and the reason we don’t have tight figures on it, is because when we look into it, we see that maybe a 16-year-old girl has sent an image to her 16-year-old boyfriend," he said.
“We then approach that mainly from a child-welfare approach. We're not there to prosecute the girl for sending an image she shouldn’t have.
“We’re there to make sure that her parents know this has happened, that she’s engaged in this behaviour and then we liaise with Tusla, which we are obliged to do from a child-welfare point of view.
“I think the fact that police might call to the family door is a shock in itself. We explain to people that the sharing of images of a child, regardless of the reason behind it, is technically a criminal offence — however, we don't deal with it with that approach in mind when it's juvenile to juvenile.”
Figures from the Department of Justice show gardaí have commenced 72 prosecutions related to 49 investigations under Coco's Law, which was enacted last February and which deals with the non-consensual distribution of intimate images.
Justice Minister Simon Harris said he hoped the figures send a clear message that sharing intimate images without consent is a crime, as is the threat to share images.
“We want people to know that if anyone shares an image, or threatens to share an image, it will be investigated and dealt with appropriately by An Garda Síochána," he said.
Superintendent Lackey said the overwhelming aspect for victims is the potential embarrassment factor, which leaves them in a position where they don’t want to tell people that they have allowed someone to take a photo of them or that they have posted a photo.
He said he believed the whole area of the non-consensual sharing of intimate images was underreported, and young males were less inclined to seek help.
He urged people to come forward to gardaí, who will listen, help, and support, as well as abide by anyone's wishes on how they want the matter to be dealt with.
