Justice asked parents to check their children’s phones and report the groups

The Mendoza Justice Department has been investigating complaints for days from parents of students from various schools in Greater Mendoza who warned that their children were included in a WhatsApp group in which images of sexual content were shared. Following the presentations, the Prosecutor’s Unit for Crimes against Sexual Integrity carried out a series of evidentiary measures and established – in principle – that it had been created and administered by minors.

This Wednesday, the Public Ministry issued a statement explaining that the instruction is in development and the intervention of covert elders controlling the group is not ruled out. In addition, asked parents of children and adolescents to control their children’s cell phones with the objective of “corroborate the existence of a WhatsApp group that draws your attention due to its content.”

At the same time, if the finding on the device is positive, he asked the “responsible adults that do not delete the messages or delete the groupexplaining that it is necessary for them to present themselves “Urgently ask the Crimes Against Sexual Integrity Unit to file a complaint, taking your child’s device with you, in order to enable the extraction of the necessary information to be able to find those responsible for the distribution of this material.” ”.

The researchers took the opportunity to provide recommendations to parents for responsible use of social networks and instant messaging applications and video game chatsto avoid this action.

• Teach them how to configure their privacy.
• Do not accept invitations to participate in groups indiscriminately, to which people who are absolutely unrelated to the circle of minors may join.
• Explain to children and adolescents the seriousness of the circulation of this material. It is essential to let them know that this is a crime and that it is punishable by a prison sentence, that the dissemination of material with sexual content in which children and adolescents are being sexually victimized by adults is not funny.
• Dialogue with them and reflect together that this is also a crime; that the material can reach the hands of very young children who may be psychologically affected by coming into contact with images for which they are not prepared to see or understand their significance.
• It is key to keep in mind that in all cases children and adolescents must know that before being incorporated into a WhatsApp group, their authorization must be requested, a situation about which those responsible must be aware. so that minors are not included in groups without their respective and necessary consent.

The case broke out recently in provinces such as Buenos Aires, Mendoza and Córdoba. Apparently, These would be subjects who add or recruit children and adolescents to WhatsApp groupsgenerally called “Get people in,” where explicit sex videos or photographs of naked adults are shared.

Authorities from different schools and also parents noticed the situation and took measures by filing criminal complaints and organizing explanatory talks at the institutions.