What my 12-year-old told me about WhatsApp groups changed my mind about a ban
The IndependentThe best of Voices delivered to your inbox every week - from controversial columns to expert analysis Sign up for our free weekly Voices newsletter for expert opinion and columns Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. ” I’ve also, she reminded me, heavily impressed upon her the need to self-report if she sees something that makes her feel uncomfortable – which she has done, several times. It’s not been without issue: I once had to mention to another girl’s parent that her daughter had posted a YouTube video to their small WhatsApp friends’ group that had underlying sexual connotations. If our kids feel too scared to admit someone is saying something horrible on WhatsApp, because they think we’ll go mad and punish them for it – or punitively take away their devices when it wasn’t their fault to begin with – then of course they’re not going to tell us about it. And yes, we could row back on WhatsApp and other social media, or ban smartphones outright for under-16s, but I’m not sure that would even prove the net positive some suggest it would be.
History of this topic
The parents’ WhatsApp for my children’s school is driving me crazy – but I refuse to give it up
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Child pornography, ISIS decapitations, Nazi propaganda shared in kids' WhatsApp groups
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WhatsApp responds to IT Ministry, says it takes child sex abuse reports "very seriously"
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IT Ministry writes to WhatsApp about report on child sexual abuse videos being shared
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WhatsApp criticised for failing to remove child porn shared across chat groups
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