Thousands of online grooming crimes against children recorded by police during six-year wait for online safety measures
| Published date | 24 August 2023 |
| Publication title | Chester Chronicle |
The Cheshire figures for 2022/23 show there were 124 cases, down from 128 in the previous year but marking a 396% increase on the figures five years ago which was 25 cases.
The new research shows that across the UK more than 34,000 offences were recorded by police over the same period. 5,500 offences took place against primary school children, with under-12s making up a quarter of known victims.
The new analysis of the scale and nature of child sexual abuse taking place on social media comes ahead of MPs and Lords making final decisions on the Online Safety Bill next month.
The NSPCC first called for social media regulation to protect children from sexual abuse in 2017 and has been campaigning for robust legislation ever since.
They said the number of offences and victims is likely to be far higher than those known to police.
In response, they are urging politicians on all sides to support the Bill in its final stages and pass this vital legislation.
The UK-wide figures also reveal:
The stark reality of sexual violence faced by girls on social media, with four in five (83%) of grooming cases over the six years taking place against girls, where the gender was known.
Snapchat was used in more than a quarter (26%) of total instances over the six years, while Metaowned products were used in almost half (47%), where the means of communication was known.
150 different apps, games and websites were used to target children according to the police data analysed since 2017/18.
Sophia* was 15 when she was groomed by a man posing as a boy who she was chatting to on social media.
Sophia, now aged 19, said: "He started getting angry if I didn't reply quick enough or when I wasn't saying exactly what he wanted to hear.
"It felt strange, how he was being, so I tried breaking off the conversation with him on Yubo.
"He just found me on Instagram and moved to messaging me directly there.
"He had started asking for selfies of me, then asking me to take my clothes off and send photos.
"When he threatened me and started being angry, I was petrified.
"He used the images to control me. I wasn't even allowed to use the toilet without his permission.
"I was afraid to tell anyone because of the photos and his threats.
"He threatened...
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