New app helps kids hide explicit self-photos
A disturbing new mobile app is making it easier for teenagers to hide and store nude photos.
Children as young as 13 are sharing explicit snaps in what has become an epidemic.
Heather knows the dangers of sending explicit photos. She found out the hard way.
“You feel betrayed and I guess you feel like you can’t trust anyone,” she said.
She believes other students are to blame for leaking her intimate photos online.
“It’s scary and people have to realise that somebody, if they don’t like you, they can easily put your name and your image anywhere they like and cause a lot of problems for you at school or work,” Hearther said.
One high school student told 7 News children as young as 13 are sending explicit photographs.
“They can all claim that they’ve never sent them but there’s photos to prove that differ,” Joel said.
“It’s kind of out of the ordinary if you haven’t sent a nude photo these days.”
A disturbing new phone all called The Vault is making it easy for teenagers to hide photographs.
“Boys share it,” Joel said.
“They share things. No shame. It’s kind of like a pride thing. They think it’s funny.”
The app is password protected and disguises itself by mimicking other apps like a calculator.
If anyone tries to access it, the program takes a photograph of them as evidence.
“Some just get bored and talk to a random and within a few hours they get a nude,” Joel told 7 News.
Cyber safety experts warn that teenagers are dabbling in danger.
“Most of the kids involved don’t realise that it’s very likely they’re committing a criminal offence,” Alison Kershaw said.
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