Recent disturbing content of a suicide shared on TikTok and other platforms has graphically illustrated the dangers of social media use by children and young people.

In particular TikTok has a younger usership than many other platforms and features a lot of interactive content that is the current craze. But many parents have now become accutely aware of how damaging content is 'hidden' online, disguised behind innocuous images of kittens etc, to maximise 'shock factor'.

The recent suicide content led to eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, and National Suicide Prevention Adviser to the Prime Minister, Christine Morgan, to urge all Australians to avoid viewing or sharing it.

In a media release they said: 'The deeply distressing content has gone viral across global online platforms, and is currently being shared by Australians.  

Ms Grant confirmed that contact has been made about the reports with the major social media companies.

“We will continue working closely with them to get the video removed expeditiously and to prevent re-upload. We continue to monitor the situation,” Ms Grant said. 

“We urge Australians who encounter this content to report it immediately to the social media platform they’ve seen it on, or to eSafety at esafety.gov.au/report/illegal-harmful-content. 

“This is yet another example of social media platforms struggling to incorporate safety protections at the core of their product offerings. To prevent this from happening in the first place, they need clear processes and procedures, including the technology tools to detect and remove harmful content much more quickly.  In situations like this, it becomes even clearer that safety by design and cross-platform sharing of hashes of harmful content is critical. 

“We advise parents, carers and educators against drawing young people’s attention to the issue unnecessarily, so as not to peak curiosity – once you see this horrific content, it’s impossible to unsee. Instead, keep an eye on those who are more vulnerable and at-risk, and check in with them about their interactions on and offline, help them build their digital resilience and let them know they can come to you for help if they see graphic or distressing content online.”

eSafety has developed a series of tips for parents to help limit young people’s exposure to harmful content online:

• Engage in your child’s online activities – ask what apps, sites and games they’re using and make sure they’re age-appropriate
• Use parental controls on devices to help limit what your child is exposed to
• Help them report and block upsetting content they see on social media sites or apps
• Let them know they can come to you about anything upsetting they see online
• Head to esafety.gov.au to find out the latest advice on apps, social media and online safety issues'