We completely understand how overwhelming it can be to protect your children online. With all the apps and platforms out there, it’s tough to know where to even start. But, just remember—you’re not alone in this, and there are ways to help safeguard them while still letting them enjoy the benefits of being online. Protecting children online really is a multifaceted task, but by being aware, staying involved, and putting a few key measures in place, you can make a big difference.

This research summary: 1. Defines various forms of sexual cyberbullying 2. Reports what we know about the prevalence of these online behaviors 3. Discusses the factors that increase the risk for or protect youth against sexual cyberbullying as well as the potential consequences of experiencing sexual cyberbullying 4. Reviews what is known about preventing sexual cyberbullying 5. Shares information about relevant laws and resources for youth-supporting professionals who want to help youth who may experience sexual cyberbullying

Global estimates suggest that more than half (1 billion) of the world’s children aged 2–17 experienced physical, sexual and/or emotional abuse during the past year.1 Addressing violence against children and adolescents is part of UNICEF’s core mission to protect the health and well-being of children and adolescents, grounded in gender equality programming priorities articulated in the 2018–2021 Gender Action Plan and the 2018–2021 Strategic Plan, particularly Goal Area 3: Every child is protected from violence and exploitation. As UNICEF prepares a new Child Protection Strategy and Gender Policy to accompany the next organization-wide Strategic Plan, this paper examines how and why UNICEF and international partners should pay greater attention to gender dimensions of violence against children and adolescents (VAC/A), including drivers of violence and opportunities for more effective violence prevention and response. Greater attention to gender across all violence programming and evidence generation responds to recommendations of evaluations of UNICEF’s work on violence,2 child protection,3 and Gender Action Plans.4,5 This paper also explores the rationale for greater attention to links among different forms of violence across the lifespan, including ways in which violence against adult women, particularly intimate partner violence (IPV) affects children’s and adolescents’ health, well-being and risk of violence, and the implications of those intersections for UNICEF’s violence prevention and response programming.

Child helplines identified some common attributes of the victims of OCSEA that contact them. The most common form of OCSEA reported to the child helplines took the form of blackmail using intimate images that the victims had shared with the perpetrator. This is termed as sexual extortion of children. Members also suggested some key risk factors in the victims’ background, such as their age (being younger than 17) or familial environment (living in dysfunctional households). Many of the child helplines mentioned the guilt and shame experienced by the survivors, and fear of their parents or caregivers finding out, as well as a lack of knowledge that a crime had been committed.

Thorn published youth-centered research that digs into the experiences of French youth (aged 12-16) with online sexual harms, including cold solicitations, online grooming, sexting, NCII, and the hurdles they face in disclosing their experiences. FRENCH VERSION