The police are investigating reports of minors being exposed to sexual activity while using an app that is synonymous with child grooming, after horrified parents raised the alarm.
Speaking to The Sunday Times of Malta on the condition of anonymity, a distraught father described how he discovered that his 10-year-old daughter had been exposed to grooming while making use of music-sharing application Musical.ly.
“My daughter downloaded this application and at first I had no problem with it because it seemed like a harmless music-sharing app.
“But then I discovered that other users had been in touch with her, asking for explicit photos. A shiver went down my spine when I found out the sort of photos these people asked for not just out of concern for her but also because all her friends use Musical.ly,” the father explained, recalling the moment he found the messages and compromising shots of his daughter on her phone.
Musical.ly is a video social network app used to create and share short videos that has over 100 million users worldwide.
After looking up the app online, the father came across a number of reports from parents all over the world who were complaining that it was serving as a hub for paedophiles to communicate with children, convincing them to send photos of themselves naked.
A shiver went down my spine when I found out the sort of photos these people asked for
The father proceeded to file a report to the police who then assigned a psychologist to help his daughter deal with the trauma as she slowly started to come to terms with what had happened.
He said he had always monitored what applications his daughter used, pointing out that the predators were very skilful and made it very difficult to spot, masking their intentions well for a long time.
When contacted, the police confirmed that the Cyber Crime Unit was investigating at least one report of issues encountered by minors making use of such an app, pointing out that it had been aware that concerns had been raised abroad.
“The Cyber Crime Unit is aware that concerns about this app had been raised in foreign media as far back as March 2016 following reports by young internet users who claimed that they had been exposed to sexual activity whilst using this app,” a spokesman for the police said. Investigations into the report are ongoing.
The spokesman added that the Malta Police Force has not issued any warnings specific to this app or any similar apps, pointing out that such apps were not illegal.
“Unfortunately, the features of such apps are sometimes abused. In this respect, it is important for parents to be aware what applications are being used by their children and also discuss with them remedial action that can be taken whenever they come across something which makes them uncomfortable,” the spokesman went on.
Meanwhile, a spokeswoman from the BeSmartOnline project said it was important not to simply single out one app but parents must realise that such risks exist irrespective of what app is used.
“It is essential that parents learn what apps and technology their children are using, more importantly what functions these apps allow. Musical.ly, like many other app, allows children to share content and interact with other people. Whilst this can be a positive aspect, it can also present certain risks, especially if the children start interacting with people they don’t know.
“The key is education and helping children recognise these risks, and how to engage appropriately with others whilst online,” the spokeswoman said.
claire.caruana@timesofmalta.com