Detective Senior Sergeant Kepal Richards from the NZ Police Online Child Exploitation Across New Zealand (OCEANZ) team reports a surge in incidents of young people sharing nudes online.

“We are seeing an increase in reports of young people sharing nudes online of their friends, other young people from their schools or teens they don’t even know,” says Richards.

These images, once shared on social media platforms, are flagged as child exploitation material and reported to the US-based National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). NCMEC notifies the New Zealand Police, Department of Internal Affairs, or New Zealand Customs Service through Cyber tip notifications for further investigation.

“While we advocate young people don’t share naked images of themselves, we know it happens,” Richards continues.

“If you receive a nude of another young person, don’t be part of the cycle and post it somewhere else. Delete the message, be kind, and think about how you would feel if the image was of you.”

“We know that when a young person discovers a naked image of themselves has been sent to often large numbers of their peers it can have a significant detrimental effect on their mental health.”

OCEANZ team handles multiple NCMEC Cyber tips weekly, with each case reviewed by investigators to determine appropriate action.

Police responses can range from welfare visits and discussions with school staff to potential charges, depending on the material and circumstances.

Where to report offending:

New Zealand Police:

• 105 (non-emergency)
• 111 (emergency)

Netsafe:

• Text 'Netsafe' to 4282
• Email: [email protected]
• Call toll-free on 0508 NETSAFE (0508 638 723)
• Online report form: netsafe.org.nz/report
• Helpline hours: 8 am – 8 pm Monday to Friday, 9 am – 5 pm on weekends