Parents have been warned about a smartphone app used as an add-on to Snapchat as the app is ‘an open door for s*xual predators’.
Through the YOLO app, people can ask questions anonymously. The app has become very popular among schoolchildren but child safeguarding charities are warning parents about the app.
A 12-year-old girl received an inappropriate message from an anonymous user. Her mother was left horrified when she saw the message.
The mother told that her daughter asked her to download the YOLO app because all her friends were using it.
A few days later when she checked, there were some messages, including some indecent proposals and inappropriate messages.
The mother said her daughter didn’t even understand the messages but she was left shocked when she saw the messages.
The mother said: “This is an open door for bullying because you can say whatever you like and you don’t know where it comes from.”
Even though the app says that the users should be 17 and over, many schoolchildren are using the app.
Andy Burrows, Head of Child Safety Online Policy at the NSPCC, said that any app which allows users to send messages anonymously can be used to bully children or send inappropriate messages.
He said: “Any app which allows anonymous comments could easily be used to send harmful comments to users and, as you’ve found, if there are users masquerading as belonging to a school when that’s not the case, then that does open the door to the risk of children being groomed.”
“The site should be taking reasonable steps to ensure children are safe.”
Liam Hackett, CEO and founder of anti-bullying charity Ditch the Label, and Ashley Rolfe, Digital Marketing & Communications Manager of charity Kidscape, also warned about the app.
The YOLO app can be downloaded from the play stores and when you log in, you can find any primary and secondary school chat groups all over Britain.
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