Thanks to revenge porn, chat rooms, trolling and online grooming, we’re reminded almost every day that the internet can be a dark and dangerous place. Being Generation Y, we grew up along with the internet and social media. The newness brought caution along with it which, arguably, has given us a better understanding of its dangers (although we’re definitely not perfect).
Gen Z, on the other hand, have never known anything different. They were practically born with smartphones in their hands and the internet has always just been there. Could it be that this familiarity breeds complacency in the younger generation? Maybe.
YouTuber Coby Persin decided to conduct a ‘social experiment’ (I know, I’m sick of them, too) to show the dangers of social media. With the permission of their parents but without their knowledge, Coby sent three girls aged 12, 13, 14 friend requests on Facebook and, once they accepted, struck up a conversation with them posing as a 15-year-old boy.
Eventually, they arranged to meet. Alone. When they meet, they meet Coby, not the 15-year-old they thought they’d see, and their parents are there. What ensues is generally a lot of shouting in the girl’s faces: ‘HOW COULD YOU DO THIS?’ and ‘WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?’ It makes for extremely uncomfortable viewing.
It goes without saying that the online safety of young girls, and boys, is hugely important. They need to be taught the potential dangers. But while this video highlights the failings of society and, dare I say it, their parents, more than anything it seems to blame the girls themselves.
Sure, it’s a dangerous and silly thing to do, but who’s really at fault here? Have they been fully taught about online dangers? And what about those who groom children online? Let’s not forget about the actual perpetrators of the crime because we’re too busy talking about how ‘stupid’ these girls have been.
Social experiments are all well and good if they serve to highlight an issue, but I think we’re all pretty certain now that problems do exist. So how about we start working on them, rather than just making videos?
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.