Social Media Apps to Watch Out For!
Many children today have devices for a variety of reasons. It is easy for traffickers to contact children through apps on these devices. Here are a few that you need to monitor with your child!
-
TikToc - the algorithm that TikToc uses is complicated, but the easiest explanation is that by clicking on a specific hashtag can let other people know who are using the same hashtag. This makes it easier for traffickers/groomers to identify vulnerable populations and use the instant messaging feature to make introduction and gain access.
-
Snapchat - Because pictures and videos disappear immediately after viewing, sexting is a common use for the app. Although the photos disappear from the service, nothing prevents the receiver from taking a screenshot and continuing to use, share or sell the image for a variety of purposes, including profiling, grooming, and/or trafficking. This specific act is known as sexploitation. This app also contains a “map” feature that potentially allows other users to track the location of the user, depending on the privacy settings.
-
Yubo - Sometimes known as “Teen Tinder” because this app uses emphasizes judging appearance, Yubo is an app that has been used to identify, recruit, and groom potential victims. The live feature also allows for recording video, audio, and text conversations, which could be used for sexploitation purposes.
-
Instagram - This app is similar to Snapchat, in that, depending on how the privacy settings are configured, tagging others can identify people and locations. This may make it easier for traffickers/groomers to identify where users spend time in the physical world. Traffickers/groomers can also use hashtags to identify vulnerable populations and then connect with them using the private messaging feature.
Overall, you should always be having conversations with your children on what is appropriate to share and be monitoring what they are doing on their devices!
Information gathered from justaskprevention.org