Sexting-: New Social Problem of the Urban Youth in India
Sexting or sharing of sexual images via a mobile phone is becoming increasingly common in India. This “phenomenon” has been growing steadfastly in recent years because of the easy availability & low cost of ever faster smart phones. This coupled with the low price of Internet for mobiles has become the catalyst for this particular problem.
Sexting is especially popular among stripling as they are much more tech savvy than any other demographic in the country & this problem is not only in India but also in the rest of the world as proven by this study done in Australia
The main reason for the emergence & the increasing frequency for sexting is peer pressure, which teenagers are most vulnerable to. This need to be recognized among their friends & to be seen as “cool” clouds their better judgment.
This has been highlighted by the recent spate of scandalous MMS’s & morphed photos involving school going youngsters, which has negatively impacted not merely the victims involved but their families & our society in general. The victims have little legal remedy available to them & the stigma attached makes them unwilling to come forward & report these incidents.
This is where the government & the media need to play an important & active part in creating awareness & to discourage this activity, the government needs to implement stricter laws & punishment for the perpetrators & put more resources in the cybercrime department as tracking the originators of morphed photos is very hard once they come into flow. The media on the other hand needs to highlight this problem without sensationalizing it & protecting the victim’s identity.
Educating & informing the children in schools & by parents will also play an important role in reducing this problem because banning mobile phones is no longer an option in today’s day & age.
This is a problem which needs to be nipped in the bud as soon as possible as the implications of this behavior can have an adverse impact on our youngsters long into the future.
Do leave your thoughts & comments below to let your fellow readers know what you think about this problem & how we can work together as a society to combat it.