Child victims of social media crimes in Japan hit 10-year high

The figure rose by about 20 pct from the previous year.

As the age of victims is believed to be decreasing, the agency plans to monitor social media posts and issue warnings against enticing messages.

According to the NPA, the total number of victims under 18 increased by 5.4 pct to 1,566.

The number of elementary school student victims rose by 31.

Seven of the elementary school victims were boys.

Compared to the 2016 level, the number of high school students fell by about 40 pct, while that of elementary school students increased by about four-fold.

The largest age group among victims was 11-year-olds, with 71 cases, followed by 12-year-olds, with 57 cases.

The agency said, "Many children start owning smartphones at around age 10, and becoming accustomed to using them may have diminished their awareness of potential risks."

There were 55 cases of nonconsensual indecent acts, 45 involving child pornography and 24 of nonconsensual sexual acts, among other offenses.

By platform, Instagram, TikTok and Line accounted for about half of the total, with 85 cases.

Community apps such as Zepeto accounted for 14 cases and Parallel for 12 cases, showing a trend toward diversification of contact tools.

Incidents via online games remained high at 22.

Only about 10 pct of victims under 18 had filtering enabled to restrict access to harmful sites.

"More than half were lured through posts unrelated to crime, such as those about hobbies," an NPA official said, urging parents and other guardians to discuss with their children which platforms they use and whom they add as "friends," and to ensure that filtering is enabled.