Internet used for 15 child sex offences every day
THE INTERNET was used to commit an average of 15 child sexual offences a day in the last 12 months, a charity has claimed today.
The NSPCC has called on the next government to make online safety a top priority as it published police figures showing that 5,653 child sex crimes committed against children as young as three last year had an online element.
A total of 39 forces across England and Wales reported cyber-related sex crimes against under18s that included rape, grooming, and sexual assault.
This number has risen by 44 per cent from 2015/16 when 39 forces across England and Wales who responded to the same Freedom of Information request by the NSPCC recorded 3,903 cyber-related sexual offences.
This is the second year police have been required to ‘cyber flag’ any crime that involved the internet. The three Yorkshire forces who responded to the request all revealed increases in such offences.
Humberside saw 226 reported sex offences against children with a cyber flag, up 80 per cent from the 2015/16 total. North Yorkshire Police and South Yorkshire Police saw increases of 29.6 per cent and 35.8 per cent respectively.
Peter Wanless of the NSPCC, said: “These figures confirm our fears that offenders are exploiting the internet to target children for their own dark deeds.
“Children also tell our Childline service that they are being targeted online by some adults who pose as children and try to meet them, or persuade them to perform sexual acts on webcams, before blackmailing them.
“This terrifies them and can leave some feeling worthless, depressed, and suicidal. We cannot idly sit by knowing that more and more innocent young people are being harmed online.”
Separately, it has emerged that West Yorkshire Police urged members of a “paedophile hunting” group to stop posing as children online in order to ensnare suspected offenders.
It issued a letter to Predator HunTers saying that it is unable to sanction the group’s activities.
The group said a court had ruled that such groups were not working outside the law.