– It was three in the morning, and she said that she had been added to a Snapchat group with absolutely horrible videos. This is what the mother says, who wishes to remain anonymous because she is afraid of the consequences for her daughter if she speaks openly. news knows the woman’s identity. – It started with a number of penis videos and films of boys masturbating. The next video was a boy being beaten up. She says that she was completely dumbfounded by watching the videos, and that it was clear that those who were filmed were minors. – Then there is a boy who is lying on the floor and is clearly drunk, and they film his genitals and hit him in the face. There were also videos of heavily intoxicated girls, and young people committing violence against animals. Mora believes she can see several famous places in Tromsø in the videos. On Snapchat, you can be added to groups by others. This is what had happened to the daughter this night. Mora estimates that there were around 50 participants in the group when they checked. Most of them were young people from Tromsø and the surrounding municipalities, she believes. – We could see that there were certain people who had been added again and again when they tried to leave the group, she says. The police are investigating The daughter took a screen recording of what she saw, because she realized she had to report it. Mora is concerned that minors are being filmed. Her daughter attends secondary school, and recognized a girl in one of the videos. Immediately, the mother thought she would warn other parents. Therefore, she not only went to the police, but also posted in a group on Facebook. – Maybe some young people have seen this and are terrified and alone, and have no idea what to do. The post was frequently shared, and shortly afterwards the snapchat group was deleted. But the woman’s daughter had evidence on her phone. This message was posted on the Snapchat group after the mother published a post in a Facebook group to warn against the group. Photo: Screenshot The police in Troms confirm that they have received information that there has been a group where videos with sexual content and, in part, serious violence against young people have been shared. – We are now investigating the matter. The police are working to find out what was shared. If there is something that could be punishable by what is shared, or the sharing itself, then the priority will be to find out who is behind it, says police attorney Jacob Bergh. Police attorney Jacob Bergh confirms that they are investigating the case. Photo: Kristina Kalinina / news – A social problem He says the penalty varies in such cases, but that you can risk between one and three years in prison. Bergh says it is not unusual for these types of videos to be shared in a youth environment, but that this method is unusual. – The police believe it is one person who has shared a lot of material with many different young people, says Bergh. Willy-Tore Mørch is a child psychologist and professor emeritus at UiT – the Arctic University of Norway. – This is a social problem that we have seen appear more recently, we did not see this a few years ago. This is completely new, and it also means that the degree of severity is much greater because it spreads so quickly, he says. Spreading videos of violence or abuse against young people can be devastating both for the young people in the videos and for those who receive them. – It will certainly be a shock for them when they discover that they are on these videos. It can lead to mental health problems, depression and other mental disorders. But it is also serious for those who watch this. Young people themselves can be triggered to do the same, says Mørch. Child psychologist Willy-Tore Mørch believes the spread of videos is devastating for both those in the videos and those who receive them. Photo: Eirik Hind Sveen The professor advises young people who experience videos of them being shared to contact safe adults who can help them deal with it both criminally and psychologically. – When it comes to those who do this, you can’t talk them down. These are young people who have major problems and need mental health protection and reactions from society, which the police take care of, says Mørch. – Be good parents He points out that most young people do not do such things, which youth surveys also show. – Young people today are very well-functioning. They work better today in all areas than just a generation ago. They know more, drink less and there is less drug use, he says. The mother of the girl who reported the Snapchat group hopes that the case may lead to more parents becoming aware of what their children may be exposed to on social media, and thus be able to talk to the children about it. – The children must know that it is safe to come to mum, dad or other guardians with what they have experienced. But the parents also need to know what is going on. – I think we can help each other to be good parents.
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Warns against Snapchat groups with violence and abuse of young people – news Troms and Finnmark
