The Grayson County Sheriff’s Office is warning of an alarming trend involving teenagers sending nude photos and videos of themselves to other teens.
GCSO said in a release Thursday that both their agency and the Leitchfield Police Department have recently been investigating numerous cases where nude photos of underage girls and boys are being shared with other underage students and adults.
GCSO said many cases have started with an underage girl sending naked photos/videos of herself to her “boyfriend” and the boyfriend shares those photos with his friends, in some instances with permission or knowledge of the girl. Boys are also sharing photos of themselves. Many of the pictures are being shared through the popular app Snapchat, though text message and other electronic ways are used.
GCSO said possession of images of anyone under the age of 18 is a criminal offense and punishable by 1-20 years in the penitentiary depending on the exact offense, and that juveniles are not exempted from repercussions such as being placed on the Sex Offender Registry for life.
Read the full release below:
“In the recent weeks and months the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office and the Leitchfield Police Department have been investigating numerous cases where nude photos of underage girls and boys are being shared with other underage students and adults. Many of these cases start out where a girl sends naked photos/videos of herself to her “boyfriend” and the boyfriend shares those photos with his friends, in some instances with permission or knowledge of the girl. Additionally, we have seen where the boys are also sharing photos of themselves with the girls and other youth. Many of these photos are being shared through a popular app called “Snapchat.” However, they are also being transmitted via text message and other electronic means.
“What these teens may not realize is that many of these photos have a locator attached to them which would give a would-be child molester or thief the exact address and even the exact room of the house from where this photo was sent. Additionally, when a photo is sent electronically via a social media app it is likely that someone else has access to that photo. That someone else is likely someone that does not have the best interest at heart when it comes to tracking down the teen that sent it. Even if a photo is DELETED once it is sent, it WILL NEVER go away and the photos are likely to surface on stranger’s or child molester’s phone, child pornography websites, and even law enforcement’s Crimes Against Children Task Force’s radar, thus, potentially ruining any aspirations or career choices the child may have had. In addition, when a child sends an inappropriate image or video they are putting the rest of the family and even friends in danger because of the likelihood that the photo is being tracked and shared with criminals and child molesters.
“Possession of images of anyone under the age of 18 is a CRIMINAL OFFENSE and punishable by 1-20 years in the penitentiary depending on the exact offense. It should also be noted that it DOES NOT read in the Kentucky Revised Statutes that if the child is the one that produces or transmits the image they get a “free pass.” As a matter of fact there have been juveniles placed on the Sex Offender Registry for life for producing and/or sharing child porn images.
“Ofc. Ian Renfrow who is the GCHS School Resource Officer and with the Leitchfield Police Dept. has investigated a steady number of “sexting” complaints over the last 4-5 years and has seen the unmerciful effects it has on our youth. “Imagine waking up to find yourself totally nude in front of thousands of strangers under a spotlight and not understanding how you got there. Essentially, that is what happens when a youth shares nude photos of themselves. The original sender of the photos or videos begins as a consenting actor, however, the sender does not have any control over the photo or video once it is sent. The producer becomes unable to control how the photo/video is used and cannot stop its distribution as it is sent from one person to the next until it is hopefully intercepted by law enforcement.”-Ofc. Renfrow. Both the GCSO and the LPD have investigated graphic child porn cases like this involving kids as young as 2nd through 5th grade with the child being the one that produced the images. These youngsters do NOT have the maturity level to handle the responsibilities of social media safety and the use of a cellular device without the monitoring or oversight of an adult. Our kids ARE being taught the proper use of social media at every level in our school system. The LPD, GCSO, and KSP have teamed up to provide education at the elementary, middle and high school levels. This education MUST continue at home with proper monitoring by parents. Take ownership of your child’s devices and social media accounts. Know their passwords. The biggest deterrent to online predators is when a parent takes control of that device to ensure the safety of that youth. Take time out of your day to research the dangers and find resources to protect your child from making that potentially life changing mistake due to the freedom and inability to properly handle so much technology.
“FOR A SMALL FEE, MOST CELL PROVIDERS OFFER A WAY TO CLONE YOUR CHILD’S PHONE OR DEVICE SO THAT YOU CAN VIEW EVERY INCOMING OR OUTGOING MESSAGE, IMAGE, OR VIDEO. Educate yourself on the different apps on your child’s device and the people on their “friends list” or contacts.
“PLEASE NOTE: Apps are created and modified constantly to assist in concealing files and data on your child’s phone. There are even apps out there that serve as “counter-surveillance” that will alert the user of any attempt by a parent to “spy” on the device. For example: Photo Vault apps that appear as a calculator and use a specific mathematic equation as a security code to access hidden photos. There is also a camera function that will use a forward facing camera to take a photo of anyone who logs into the phone, tipping your child off as to what you have viewed on their device.
“Lastly, please understand that Law Enforcement is doing everything we can to protect our kids from the dangers of social media and online predators. However, when it comes to retrieving information from social media sites it can be extremely difficult due to the fact that many do NOT retain online information for fear of lawsuit. Many will not honor U.S. search warrants because the information is stored on a server outside of the United States, thus making it nearly impossible to present a case for prosecution. However, we WILL continue to investigate and take EVERY case seriously and treat them with common sense and compassion.
“If you require further information or need more resources on online safety you may contact Ofc. Ian Renfrow at the Leitchfield Police Dept. (270) 259-3850, (270) 259-4078 (GCHS) or Sheriff Norman Chaffins at the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office (270) 259-3024.”
