File picture: Pexels
YOUNG people aged below 18 years who want nude pictures or videos of themselves removed from the internet can now report the images through a new online tool, the BBC reported on Tuesday.
The tool is a concept created by the Internet Watch Foundation and Childline (IWF) and aims to help children who have compromising images of themselves online to have them removed.
On its website, IWF says the tool is a world first and could help many worried children seek a solution to their dilemma.
The application can also be used to report an image or video that has already appeared online by sharing the URL (uniform resource locator). Using that, the IWF will then analyse the material and remove it if it breaks the law.
“We know that every time an image or video of child sexual abuse is viewed, the victim suffers repeat victimisation. We're here to stop that and you can help. If you accidentally see child sexual abuse images online, don't look away. Report anonymously to http://iwf.org.uk,” IWF posted on its Twitter account.
According to the BBC, the IWF has in recent years noticed more and more of such images online created by children themselves. Self-generated images more than doubled in the first three months of this year, compared with the same period last year.
The Argus UK newspaper quoted IWF chief executive Susie Hargreaves as saying the tool would help give young people back control.
“Once those images are out there, it can be an incredibly lonely place for victims, and it can seem hopeless. It can also be frightening, not knowing who may have access to these images,” Hargreaves said.
“This tool is a world first. It will give young people the power, and the confidence, to reclaim these images and make sure they do not fall into the wrong hands online.”
African News Agency (ANA)