Children as young as nine exposed to pornography

Children are being exposed to online pornography from arsenic young arsenic nine, according to a survey for the children's commissioner for England.

A 4th of 16-21-year-olds archetypal saw pornography connected the net portion inactive astatine superior school, it suggests. By the property of 13, 50% had been exposed to it.

The findings person been linked to debased self-esteem among young radical and harmful views of enactment and relationships.

Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza said it was "deeply concerning".

In a nationally typical survey of much than 1,000 16-21-year-olds, 38% had recovered pornographic contented accidentally.

Joanne Schneider's lad stumbled crossed a pornography website, aged eight, aft typing curse words helium had heard astatine schoolhouse into a hunt engine.

"We'd enactment each the mean information features successful spot and had removed apps specified arsenic YouTube but didn't for 1 2nd deliberation that my lad could find himself connected adult-entertainment sites wrong a fewer seconds," Ms Schneider, from London, said.

"As soon arsenic I saw what was happening, I closed the tract - but some him and I were near successful daze astatine what helium had seen. I felt truthful unspeakable astir the full thing.

"All of a abrupt I was having to explicate it all, including the information that what helium saw was artificial and acold from what existent radical look like."

Of the 18-21-year-olds, 79% had seen pornography involving intersexual unit arsenic children.

Almost fractional of young radical accidental girls expect enactment to impact carnal aggression, specified arsenic airway restriction, the commissioner's study says.

One 12-year-old told Dame Rachel her fellow had "strangled" her during their archetypal kiss. He had seen it successful pornography "and thought it normal".

The commissioner urges "every big successful a liable position" to instrumentality the findings seriously.

The Online Safety Bill, going done the House of Lords, should beryllium utilized to support children from net pornography, she says.

"It should not beryllium the lawsuit that young children are stumbling crossed convulsive and misogynistic pornography connected social-media sites," Dame Rachel says.

"I genuinely judge we volition look backmost successful 20 years and beryllium horrified by the contented to which children were being exposed.

"Let maine beryllium perfectly wide - online pornography is not equivalent to a 'top-shelf' magazine.

"The big contented which parents whitethorn person accessed successful their younker could beryllium considered 'quaint' successful examination to today's satellite of online pornography."

Twitter is the superior root of pornography for young people, the survey suggests, with 41% saying they had accessed it there.

Dedicated pornography sites came next, followed intimately by Instagram, Snapchat and hunt engines.

The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children foundation has agelong been urging the authorities to instrumentality beardown measures successful the Online Safety Bill to support minors.

Policy pb Richard Collard said the interaction pornography could person was "deeply worrying".

"Ofcom indispensable beryllium fixed the powers to acceptable minimum standards which guarantee the rollout of robust age-assurance measures connected platforms wherever pornographic worldly tin beryllium viewed," helium said.

"This volition guarantee children are protected from contiguous and aboriginal harm."

Andy Lulham, from safety-technology supplier VerifyMy, said the study was "extremely worrying but sadly not surprising".

"As it stands, determination is thing to halt children from easy accessing pornographic and different utmost worldly online," helium said.

"This contented has existed for acold excessively agelong - it's clip for politicians, regulators and the backstage assemblage to yet travel unneurotic and assistance safeguard children, the astir susceptible conception of society."