Study shows how aggressors entice teenagers on the internet
An unprecedented survey by ChildFund Brasil revealed how attackers use online games, social networks and messaging applications to entice teenagers on the internet.
The survey is part of the third phase of the study "Mapping the Vulnerability Factors of Brazilian Adolescents on the Internet" and brings, for the first time, interviews with victims and perpetrators of online sexual violence in Brazil.
The results were released during the seminar "Orange May: protecting is caring everywhere", held at the São Paulo City Council, in reference to the month to combat abuse and sexual exploitation of children and adolescents.
According to the study, abusers often exploit trusting relationships, lack of supervision and digital environments frequented daily by teenagers to get closer to their victims.
The research also highlights gaps in knowledge about protection mechanisms. According to the survey, 94% of teenagers interviewed said they did not know how to report cases of sexual violence online.
The study was carried out over three years and gathered quantitative and qualitative data.
In the first stage, 8,436 adolescents between 13 and 18 years old were interviewed in all regions of the country. The second phase included face-to-face focus groups carried out with students from public and private schools in Minas Gerais and Ceará.
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The most recent stage was developed in partnership with the Instituto Tecnologia e Dignidade Humana and sought to delve deeper into aspects linked to the motivations, contexts and dynamics used by aggressors in the digital environment.
According to Mauricio Cunha, executive president of ChildFund, online sexual violence against children and adolescents requires integrated responses between the State, families, schools, civil society and technology companies.
"The study reinforces the urgency of looking at online sexual violence against children, young people and adolescents as a complex phenomenon, which requires articulated responses between the State, civil society and technology companies", says Mauricio Cunha, executive president of ChildFund.
Source: CNN