Manitoba RCMP investigated a case in which a seven-year-old girl was coerced into sending nude photos to a man over Snapchat. Experts and police warn there's a growing trend of children under 13 being sexually exploited through social media.

Manitoba

A 7-year-old girl in Manitoba was sexually exploited on Snapchat by a stranger, despite being near her mother at the time. Authorities traced the suspect to the United Kingdom, where police are now investigating. 

Experts note that such cases are becoming more common, with the Canadian Centre for Child Protection reporting over 1,200 incidents involving children under 13 being lured online, most frequently through Snapchat. Critics argue that while parental supervision is important, social media companies must take greater responsibility for child safety, and new laws may be needed to enforce stricter protections.

Experts issue warning after 7-year-old sexually exploited on Snapchat

A 7-year-old Manitoba girl was sexually exploited on Snapchat while just one room away from her mother, coerced into sending explicit photos and videos by a stranger. Her mother found pictures of the man's genitals on the phone. A victim that young might be shocking to some. Not to Detective Sergeant Mike Olson. Under 10, it used to be a surprise. Now I would say it's more common. CBC obtained an RCMP production order requesting the Snapchat account data to try and track down who contacted the girl. Olson wasn't involved in this specific case, but has investigated many like it. It's more, probably more just with kids that are spending more time. The more time on these devices, the higher the chance that these kind of things can happen. Olson recommends supervising children whenever they're online, but he also says companies like Snapchat need to do more to prevent it. The Canadian Centre for Child Protection says it's received over 1,200 reports of children under 13 being lured online. The number one platform? Snapchat. They'll often refer to things like Instagram or Snapchat as a phone book for children because you can easily just find kids and perhaps send a friend request or perhaps kind of somehow get into their friend group. Welcome to Snapchat's Family Centre, your go-to hub for tools and resources to help you... Snapchat says users need to be 13 and up. It has some parental controls on teen accounts. Parents can see a week-long history of who their kids are chatting with. In the same way parents can't see or hear their teens' everyday personal and private communications, parents won't be able to view their teens' conversations or snaps. It's essentially designed to download responsibility onto the end user and kids inside of these inherently dangerously designed environments, and the platforms somehow absolve themselves of responsibility. Marcoux says parental supervision can only go so far. He says social media apps make money off people using them, including kids, and won't increase their security willingly. Unless Canada passes laws forcing them to meet safety codes, Marcoux says more Canadian children will be exploited. As for the case of the seven-year-old Manitoba girl, RCMP found the man in the United Kingdom. Now it's up to police there to investigate. Michelle Allen, CBC News, Winnipeg.

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