ONLINE GROOMING

When a child is groomed online, groomers may hide who they are by sending photos or videos of other people. Sometimes this’ll be of someone younger than them to gain the trust of a “peer”. They might target one child online or contact lots of children very quickly and wait for them to respond.

A groomer can use the same sites, games and apps as young people, spending time learning about a young person’s interests and use this to build a relationship with them.

Children can be groomed online through:

• social media networks
• text messages and messaging apps, like Whatsapp
• email
• text, voice and video chats in forums, games and apps.

Whether online or in person, groomers can use tactics like:

• pretending to be younger
• giving advice or showing understanding
• buying gifts
• giving attention
• taking them on trips, outings or holidays.

Groomers might also try and isolate children from their friends and family, making them feel dependent on them and giving the groomer power and control over them.

They might use blackmail to make a child feel guilt and shame or introduce the idea of ‘secrets’ to control, frighten and intimidate. Pressurising young people to send intimate photos and then threatening to share them with friends or family is just one example of this.