Sexting refers to the sending of sexually suggestive or explicit messages either in text, image or video form. Among young people, it is also commonly known as “sending nudes” or “sexts.”

Over the past years sexting among young people has become a growing concern for hotlines and child protection organisations. Sexually explicit content featuring minors is referred to as “self-generated” content or self-generated child sexual abuse material (CSAM). It has become one of the most prevalent types of CSAM received by INHOPE member hotlines.

What about sharing content consensually?

Although these images might be taken and shared consensually, often they can end up being distributed or posted online without the consent of the depicted person. (Non-Consensual Intimate Imagery) Once this happens, the originator can quickly lose all control over the images, forcing them to witness the material being spread against their will. This can lead to feelings of helplessness, shame, anxiety and potentially devastating consequences mentally as well as socially.

Does that mean I can never share nudes?

While this does not mean that you can never sext with your partner, it is incredibly important to consider and be aware of all the potential consequences before clicking send on any sexually explicit content. If you are set on wanting to share nudes, consider the following three steps:

• Communication: Talk it out with your partner. Set some ground rules, know each other’s comfort zones, and be aware of what could happen if things go public.
• Consent: Everyone involved should be cool with sexting. If either of you is not okay with it, stop right there.
• Trust: Only ever sexting someone you trust completely.

Especially if you are a minor, it’s important to know that the shared content will be treated as illegal content if it depicts an underage person. This means that anyone possessing, producing and/or distributing this content can be prosecuted.

What if my nudes are shared against my will?

If you are worried about an image of yourself being shared publicly it is important to remember that it is not your fault and that help is available. Resources and help are available internationally, so regardless of where you are in the world, there are professionals you can reach out to for support.

• The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) provides a free service "Take It Down" that can help you remove or stop the online sharing of nude, partially nude, or sexually explicit images or videos of minors below the age of eighteen.

• StopNCII.org, is a free tool designed to support victims of Non-Consensual Intimate Image (NCII) abuse. The tool generates a hash value from an intimate image. Duplicate copies of the image all have the exact same hash value. By sharing the hash value with participating companies they can help to detect and remove images from being posted or shared online.

• Childline and the Internet Watch Foundation's Report Remove tool allows young people to report a nude video or image shared online to be removed. This tool provides a child-centred approach to image removal which can easily be done online.
  
  

If you’ve come across sexual content of yourself or another minor, contact your local hotline to have it removed by clicking here.