Australia: Surge in teens seeking online help over sexting and cyberbullying during COVID-19

Australia’s national counselling service Kids Helpline reported increases of teenagers between 13–18 years seeking online help over sexting and cyberbullying by 55% and 39% respectively during the pandemic. Australia’s  eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant shared that when comparing monthly averages from March to September in 2019 and 2020, adult cyber abuse doubled and youth-based cyberbullying increased by 32%. During the pandemic, she shared that child sexual abuse material increased by 123%, and image-based abuse rose by more than 172%.