Netsafe Quarterly Report April – June 2023

Kia ora,

April to June 2023 was Netsafe’s busiest ever quarter for complaints assessed as falling within the scope of the Harmful Digital Communications Act.

Rising Sextortion Cases: Netsafe and the Police have observed a significant increase in reported cases of sextortion, a form of online blackmail where perpetrators threaten to share intimate images or videos unless certain demands are met. Many cases still go unreported due to victims’ embarrassment, shame, fear of judgment, or fear of consequences. Netsafe’s partnership with Protect Children aims to educate young people about sextortion and empower them to support friends in crisis.

Sharenting and Children’s Privacy: Netsafe has noticed a growing trend of “sharenting,” where parents increasingly share personal information about their children on social media. It’s common for people to believe that sharing children’s moments online allows them to connect with family and friends. They think they are creating a digital version of a photo album but in reality, they are creating a digital footprint for their child that anybody could have access to.

If you’d like advice on how to celebrate your family safely, check out our tips at – netsafe.org.nz/sharenting/

Misinformation in New Zealand: Research commissioned by Netsafe reveals that sharing false information intended to deceive and mislead is a major online danger in New Zealand. Approximately half of the population (48%) encounters misinformation daily, with climate change, vaccine claims, racial intolerance, and COVID-19 being common subjects. Vulnerable groups, including the LGBTQIA+ community, Pasifika, neurodiverse individuals, seniors, and teens, are particularly targeted.

Impact and Distribution of Misinformation: Misinformation is predominantly found on social media platforms (77%) and spread through conversations with others or overseas news sites (68%). The report shared with the MoJ emphasizes the need for improved media literacy, as only 28% of New Zealanders feel confident in identifying misinformation. The research also highlights that misinformation damages public trust in the government and can negatively impact responses to important issues like COVID-19 and elections.

General Election: With the general election just weeks away, we’ve been talking to politicians about Netsafe’s recommendations to address online harm. Specifically, we urge the Government to:

1. Support NGO-led anti-scam initiatives

Increasingly sophisticated scams are having a profound impact on citizens. They require immediate assistance and ongoing support.

In most like-minded jurisdictions around the world scammed citizens have access to NGO-provided anti-scam support funded by government and industry. The volume and sophistication of scams are escalating, so much so that it is becoming increasingly difficult for citizens to distinguish between scams and legitimate communications. Scammed citizens need immediate assistance followed by support to rebuild their online lives. Netsafe provides this service, but it is unfunded. While government agencies and industry recognise the scam problem there has been limited progress in advancing a one-stop solution.

Netsafe recommends: Government works with Netsafe and NGO partner IDCare to develop and fund anti-scam initiatives.

2. Increase online safety protections for young people

Young people are particularly vulnerable to cyberbullying and online abuse which can have rapid and devastating impacts on them. More services are required to educate and support young people and their digital lives. There are inadequate protections for them.

Netsafe recommends:

• • • Government update and improve online safety and media literacy curriculum in schools. Re-examine the decision to remove media literacy from Curriculum Level 1. This is necessary because the age of criminality under the Harmful Digital Communications Act applies from the age of 10 years
    • Boost funding (from Health budgets) to enable the establishment of dedicated health triage and telephone services to provide support for anyone experiencing technology-facilitated abuse and online harm
    • Improve access and support for victims of cyberbullying and their families. This could include mental health support such as counselling
    • Invest in anti-cyberbullying programmes in schools and improve reporting pathways to Netsafe
    • Fund research to address content that sexualises children or depicts self-harm and suicide violence against children.

3. Upgrade the Harmful Digital Communications Act to respond to new harms

This 2015 law does not explicitly prohibit tech-facilitated abuse using Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Advances in AI technology allow the creation of deep fake or synthetic intimate images depicting real people in situations and scenarios that are not real. These can then be shared online and used for threats or blackmail. New Zealand law does not explicitly prohibit tech-facilitated abuse using AI. There is an urgent need to review and update the Harmful Digital Communications Act to protect citizens from AI-generated abuse while at the same time modernising interventions to provide for restorative justice. Citizens must be educated about the law changes while the implementation of new measures requires in-depth research.

Netsafe recommends law reform to better protect New Zealanders:

• • • Prescribing harm types or harm principles by Regulations under the Act
    • Making clear that posting intimate visual recordings without consent clearly covers synthetic or deep fake images where a victim could be identified
    • Amending forms and processes used by the Approved Agency and the District Court to be more victim-centric
    • Whether there is a need for restorative justice solutions to be piloted or tried as alternative dispute resolution solutions
    • Addressing an absence of mechanisms under the Act when content resurfaces after settlement has been reached
    • How the Act should deal with third-party harm where the individual making a complaint is not the subject of the harmful digital communication.
    • Back up law change with education and research

• Ngā mihi,

  Brent Carey
  CEO, Netsafe