With just a few clicks, children can be exposed to adult content, sometimes even violent.
This is what an 8-year-old girl experienced when she was approached by men and received illegal content by using the Omegle app.
“I knew she had seen a child raped,” the mother said. “The more it went, the more she asked me questions and I couldn’t answer them.”
The application is mainly used to meet people online via chat or video.
This is generally not accessible to anyone under the age of 18, but by ticking two boxes confirming her age, the girl was granted access to the site.
His mother also posted a message on social media to educate other parents so something like this doesn’t happen again.
“There were places where I cried, where I was angry,” says the mother. “I felt helpless because I couldn’t figure out who was at the end because if I did, it wouldn’t be okay.”
Several players in the sector note that this phenomenon is clearly increasing.
In fact, the Canadian Center for Child Protection has seen a 37% increase in cyber violence against young people.
At CAVAC, the phenomenon can be explained more by the spread of social networks.
“This multiplication allows very malicious people, who would be malicious, easy access to the young people hiding behind these applications,” explains Marie-Christine Villeneuve, coordinator at CAVAC. “It becomes much easier for malicious people to connect with them and build trust.”
Trois-Rivières police, to whom the girl’s mother has lodged a complaint, say they are already raising awareness in schools and intend to continue the campaign.