«Sextortion is affecting more and more children»

Ms Bernhard Hug, a campaign against cybersexual offences is currently running on various channels. What is the campaign about?

In Switzerland, one in two teenagers has already been sexually harassed online. On average, it takes three minutes for children to be confronted with advances in chat or game forums. 85 per cent of those affected by cybersexual offences are under the age of 20. The three-year awareness campaign has the motto «What you share online, you share with everyone. Protect what's important to you». In 2024, the focus will be on sextortion.

More and more often, carelessly shared photos of children are being used as blackmail material.

What is sextortion?

A criminal offence in which intimate photos or videos are misused to put someone under pressure. Sometimes the perpetrators are ex-girlfriends or ex-boyfriends who abuse nude photos that were originally shared consensually, in other cases adults pretend to be teenagers online and gain the trust of minors in order to then demand sexually explicit photos that make the victim vulnerable to blackmail.

More and more often, carelessly shared photos of children are being used as blackmail material. This is exacerbated by the ability of artificial intelligence to turn harmless everyday photos into sex content. The Clickandstop.ch reporting centre has recorded an eight-fold increase in reported cases of child sextortion since 2022. It is affecting more and more.

How can we better protect children?

Firstly, by not posting any pictures that show a child head-on or their face. Secondly, parents need to speak plainly. Many people don't like to explicitly name sexualised violence online because they don't want to confront their child about it. However, it is necessary to signal to the child: You can come to us at any time.

Thirdly, parents should fully believe their child if nude images appear online for which they have no explanation. Children need to know that sextortion does not end even if the perpetrator promises to stop if money or «another picture» is sent. The police must be called immediately.