Kik, Child Sexual Abuse, and Age Verification
Recent revelations that a Maine US Senate candidate had an account on Kik, described by NBC as a “notorious chat app,” once again highlight the need for adults to protect children from the very real dangers of social media. In particular, Kik —where users can chat anonymously — has been described as a “predator’s paradise,” frequented by minors with no age verification requirements, where child pornography (child sexual abuse material, or CSAM) proliferates.
A quick review of recent news bears that out, with stories of individuals arrested for using Kiks accounts to share CSAM and sexually exploit minors in Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, and Pennsylvania, among other places. Kik’s not alone as a site that predators use to seduce and exploit children. In Georgia, a defendant pled guilty in February to hacking the Snapchat accounts of minors, stealing their (sometimes inappropriate) personal photos, and threatening them with exposure if they didn’t provide him with sexually explicit photos of themselves.
Kik, in particular, seems to have ensnared a number of children and youth into viewing child pornography, as exemplified by cases in Florida, Maryland, and Indiana in which juveniles were accused of viewing CSAM on Kik accounts.
It’s a problem that law enforcement and state legislators have tried to address, often without success. A decade ago, experts were expressing serious concern about individuals using Kik to engage in exploiting children and sharing CSAM, and the app was supposed to be shut down in 2019 but was instead sold and continues to do business as usual. At least 19 states, including most recently Iowa, have passed legislation to limit minors’ use of social media apps by requiring age verification and/or parental consent for minors. While a number of courts have found these age-based restrictions unconstitutional, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals found this month that Texas’ restrictions “materially advance[] Texas’s substantial interest in protecting children’s data, safety, and privacy in a digital world.” Those opposing the law have asked the Supreme Court to take up review. In the meantime, there are reports that kids are doing all they can to fool the age verification technology that some apps have adopted, including by drawing fake mustaches on the pictures they must upload for the age check.
While the debate continues over the efficacy and legality of the tools needed to protect children from being lured into the dark corners of the internet, adults need to ensure they understand what the children in their care are consuming. Parents, teachers, foster caregivers, and others responsible for children should take steps to manage the apps that a young person can download — something easily achievable whether you’re working with a product from Apple, Android, or Microsoft. Adults should remind children and youth of the dangers that lurk on the internet, sharing not stories of the “boogeyman” but real-life examples such as those of the criminal gangs that have extorted teens online, of the dangers of nude photos being hacked, and of the severe and life-altering criminal penalties for possessing CSAM materials.
Twenty years ago, children had more freedom to make stupid mistakes without suffering lifelong consequences. Today, going down the rabbit holes of Tik-Tok, Instagram, Kik, and other social media apps may lead a teen to a tragic end.
