Introduction to the Case Study Collection

The Cyber Trust
Part of the Family Internet Monitoring Project

This collection of case studies explores real-world news stories highlighting how children and young people can be placed at risk through their online activities.

The collection is drawn from real cases investigated by the Cyber Choices team at the National Crime Agency and stories reported in the press.

All of these cases could have been prevented had parents been able to monitor their child's online activity and intervene.



News Item Link Cyber Choices Link

Story:'My teenage daughter fell victim to a satanic online group – and I felt powerless to help'

Source: BBC News

 

A very scary story about a young girl, 14, who had fallen victim to the extreme online right-wing Satanist group called 764. The group turned out to be an international group of teenage boys and young adults who's sole purpose was to harm girls.

The behaviour of these boys makes difficult reading and the BBC added a warning before describing some of the demands these criminals placed on the girl. Four British teenagers were arrested linked to the group and one was sentenced in January to six years in jail.

 The girls mother shared how she felt at the time:

"I kept going 'just block them, stop talking to them', but I was not seeing the level of influence that was already there, and the level of fear.

"They absolutely just beat her down to make her feel she is absolutely nothing without them or with them."

This is the worst of such stories I have encountered but similar things must be happening around the world.

Protect your kids by monitoring their online world, work with them, discuss issues and ultimately remove their access to technology and report any concerns to the Police.

 Read the full story here.