Child victims of cyber-bullying 'double in a year'

More children are using apps like SnapChat and Tinder, research found. Credit: PA

The number of under-18s who have experienced cyber-bullying has doubled in the last 12 months, with as many as one in three now victims, a poll suggests.

Internet security firm McAfee polled 2,000 UK children and 2,000 adults and found over a third of 11 to 17-year-olds had been targeted by malicious online bullies.

Four in 10 teenagers said they had seen someone else being picked on online, compared to 22% in 2013.

Read: '69% of young' cyberbullied

Tinder users must have an official Facebook account to join, a spokeswoman said. Credit: PA

They study also found apps like SnapChat and Tinder are now used by youngsters - many aged 15 or under - on a daily basis.

Some 17% of the teenagers polled admitted to using Tinder - a dating app which allows users to select a potential partner based on photos - every day, but almost half of those (46%) were under 16.

The service was more popular among girls than boys, with one in five female respondents using it compared with 15% of males.

Tinder subscribers are shown other users close to their location. If they like the look of them, they give them a tick and if they receive one back, they can start communicating with each other.

It is open to those who are 13 or older, with under-18s only able to match with people in the same age bracket.

Experts warned of a widening gap in "parental understanding" of what children face online. Credit: PA

The data was published ahead of anti-bullying week, which starts on Monday, and compared the findings with a similar study carried out last year.

Parents are becoming more relaxed in their attitude towards the internet and social media, with many helping their children to set up accounts on sites with an age limit, the poll revealed.

According to the study:

  • Less than a third of parents (27%) said they were worried about their child being the victim of cyber-bullying this year.

  • That number had almost halved from 45% in the previous year.

  • Another two-thirds (67%) of children are now allowed to go online without supervision - up from 53%.

  • However, more than three-quarters (77%) of mothers and fathers polled said they had conversations about online safety, up from 68% last year.

Read: Number of children with suicidal feelings 'increases 117%" in three years

Andy Phippen, professor of social responsibility in IT at Plymouth University, said there was "a real gap" emerging between parental concern and what children faced online every day.

SnapChat was at the centre of a nude photos scandal, after thousands of pictures users believed to have been destroyed were leaked online. Credit: PA

Claire Lilley, head of child safety online at the NSPCC, said cyber-bullying is a "huge concern".

She added: "The use of teen dating apps can expose children to contact by adults who have a sexual interest in them because the age controls are often inadequate.

A spokeswoman for Tinder said there were restrictions on how under-18s could use the dating app: "You must have an official Facebook account in order to join Tinder.

"Users between age 13-17 can only match with other users in that same age range. Our terms of service prohibit misconduct, including fake profiles. Users that violate our terms of use are deleted from Tinder."