online grooming

What is Online Grooming?
Online grooming is a growing concern in the UK, particularly in England and Wales, where increasing numbers of children and young people are being targeted by perpetrators using digital platforms. Groomers use technology and the internet to form relationships with children, gain their trust, and create emotional bonds with the intention of manipulating, exploiting, and ultimately abusing them.

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Who can be a groomer?
Anyone can be a groomer, regardless of age, gender, or background. Grooming can happen very quickly or take weeks, months, or even years as perpetrators build relationships before making their intentions clear. It is often a gradual process that starts with seemingly innocent communication and escalates into manipulation and abuse.

Where and How Does Online Grooming Happen?
Children and young people are frequently targeted through social media platforms, gaming platforms, and messaging apps. Groomers often:

• Pretend to be someone else, sometimes using fake profiles with stolen or AI-generated images.
• Offer gifts, money, or special attention to build trust.
• Use flattery and emotional manipulation to create a sense of closeness.
• Slowly introduce inappropriate topics or sexual content over time.
• Encourage children to keep secrets and isolate them from friends and family.

Social media platforms are commonly used by perpetrators to contact children. Where the means of communication was known, Snapchat was involved in 48% of cases, while Meta-owned platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook, Messenger, and Instagram were also frequently used. The majority of victims are girls, accounting for 81% of cases where gender was known, with some victims as young as five years old.

Tactics used by groomers
Groomers use various methods to establish control over a child, including disguising their identity with fake photos, AI-generated images, or deepfake technology. Some perpetrators send mass messages to multiple children, waiting for those who respond. They build emotional dependence, making the child feel special while isolating them from their real-life support network. They might also use blackmail to make a child feel guilt and shame or introduce the idea of 'secrets' to control, frighten and intimidate.
Dangers of Disappearing Messages and Location SharingChildren may not always realise how easily they can be exploited through certain app features. A key concern raised by the Voices of Online Youth group is the risk posed by disappearing messages and location-sharing features on platforms like SnapChat and WhatsApp. 

The Law and Consequences for Perpetrators
In the UK, online grooming is a criminal offence under the Sexual Offences Act 2003. A perpetrator can face legal consequences if they:

• Communicate with a child in a sexual manner
• Attempt to arrange a meeting with a child
• Encourage a child to share explicit images or videos.  

​Those found guilty of online grooming may face significant penalties, including imprisonment and being placed on the sex offenders register.

Where to Get Help
​If you suspect a child is being groomed online, it is crucial to act quickly. You can:
Report concerns to CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection Command): www.ceop.police.uk 
Report concerns to your local police on 101 or online via their website. 
Contact the NSPCC Helpline for support: Call 0808 800 5000
Encourage children to speak to Childline: Call 0800 1111 or visit www.childline.org.uk
Report directly to social media platforms if a suspicious account is identified.