Paedos pose as chicken nuggets to snare kids

expert warns of abusers’ online traps

PAEDOPHILES are setting up fake social media accounts pretending to be chicken nuggets and ice cream in a bid to lure primary school kids. And one convicted fiend who pretended to be a road outside a girls’ secondary school enticed 400 of its students to accept his friend request. Another tried to persuade a primary school girl to lip sync to a song wearing only her underwear. Social media expert and forensic psychologist Dr Maureen Griffin yesterday revealed offenders have “come up with new and novel ways of gaining access to children’s information”. In a presentation for Ennis Mental Health Association in Clare, Dr Griffin said: “At primary school level, I have dealt with accounts set up pretending to be chicken nuggets and ice cream in order to befriend children. “[In another case], over 400 girls at the school accepted the road as a friend. “The owner of the account was a known convicted sex offender who made no effort to contact the girls – he didn’t follow them or meet them in real life or wait outside their school. “He simply collected their photos, pictures from teenage discos, girls’ sleepovers and a range of selfies.” Dr Griffin advised parents to protect their children online by ensuring they know and trust their followers and friends. She warned: “Any site that is targeted towards children, adults with a sexual interest in children will use that site. “Musical.ly took off by storm here a year ago at primary school level. When it started, it was a very, very cute site. “It is for five, six and sevenyear-olds and I dealt with a case during the summer of a girl on musical.ly who had 20 followers – she did not know four of them. One of them told her he would get her more likes for her songs if she sang her song again – this time in her underwear. “She was at primary school. She saw nothing wrong with dancing around her bedroom singing her favourite song but broadcasting that to people you do not know is where the difficulty lies.” Dr Griffin added she believes “online, children are subjecting themselves to mental health stresses they would never subject themselves to in real life”. The expert said that on a daily basis, children and teens are looking for approval and validation seeking “likes” and it is worrying when their online activities are left unchecked.

IT’S frightening to think Irish paedophiles are setting up fake Facebook accounts to snare youngsters.

The fact they are using innocent looking objects such as ice-cream and chicken nuggets is downright scary. Young children are naive enough to think these are safe accounts asking them to be friends. And due to the fact they are not people they are more likely to click on to them. Paedophiles by nature are manipulative and creative in their ways at getting close to young children so the fact they are using social media in this way should not be surprising. Children often don’t understand that pictures they put up online to share with friends can be accessed and downloaded by these predators. Kids are setting up Facebook and other social media accounts younger and younger these days. The case of one girl being asked by one of her followers to sing a song in her underwear and post it is enough to send a shiver down any parent’s spine. Teenagers and youngsters are looking for approval and validation seeking “likes” and it is worrying when it is left unchecked. It’s great that talks are being held at schools around the country on social media safety to warn kids of the dangers online. Parents need to constantly monitor computer usage and remind their children “stranger danger” extends to the internet too.