Estimated read time: 8-9 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — For several years now, local, state and even federal officials have been warning teenagers about the dangers of sending or sharing explicit pictures, either on social media or through text messaging.
But what happens when a teen's image ends up on a website typically frequented by child predators, even though the picture itself is innocent? Likewise, what happens if a social media page is created for the purpose of subjecting a teen to online bullying, harassment and potential defamation?
Recently, several law enforcement agencies in Utah have investigated cases in which teenagers have become the victims of such crimes. But finding those responsible, and then determining if they've even broken the law, isn't always that easy.
The investigations
In Beaver County, the sheriff's office is investigating a case involving images of local teenagers showing up on pornographic websites, even though the original pictures are not pornography.
"After speaking to several of the victims in this case, it is learned that none of them appear to have had any knowledge of this forum/website and the pictures used … have come from yearbook photos, Instagram pages, Snapchat, VSCO, person-to-person texting, etc. None of these photos were allowed to be used by the posting party by the victims," according to court documents.
Since January, investigators have identified nearly two dozen images of teens being used without consent on websites used for child sex abuse material.
"In a small community, it's upsetting. Lots of kids and parents are upset," Beaver County Sheriff Cody Black told KSL.com, noting that some of the victims are "mortified."
"Something that was supposed to be innocent, just fun in a healthy, good natured way, is being used to demean or hurt someone. The community is upset," he said, while adding that he is personally angry that "people do this stuff."
In Moab, a teenage girl reported that she had been subjected to harassing posts for months on what was believed to be a fake Facebook account "dedicated to the public online harassment and defamation of her character," a search warrant affidavit states.
The problem, according to Moab Police Chief Alexander Bell, was that the posts did not appear to be breaking the law.
"I reviewed criminal statutes and determined that while the content was particularly cruel and heinous, the account and its content was protected speech as it did not constitute electronic communication harassment," the investigating officer wrote in the affidavit.
By November, police say several fake Facebook accounts that all appeared to be created by the same person continued to make negative posts about the girl. Bell says investigators determined that fake Facebook accounts were being created to respond to the original harassing post.
"The comments were as despicable as the new posts themselves," the officer noted. "After another review, I again believed the speech to be protected, as horrible as it was."
In Highland, Lone Peak police in February began investigating an Instagram account "that is soliciting users to post things in an anonymous format. This has turned into a platform to bully and slander others," according to court documents. Both students and teachers at Lone Peak High School have been the subject of vulgar posts and bullying.
"This content is causing a lot of problems at the school," court documents state.
What authorities are doing
In the Moab investigation, by January the social media posts were targeting both the girl and her family, making claims such as calling them "a bunch of drug addicts and drug sellers," according to police.
Bell says detectives identified five social media accounts all tied to the same person. It was also determined that some of the comments had finally crossed the line into criminal behavior.
After serving a dozen search warrants, police linked the online bullying to a 24-year-old Moab woman who "has a history of using real and even fake Facebook profiles to viciously attack people she takes issue with, and that she has a history of being persistent with the behavior insomuch that it continues for prolonged periods of time."
We all need to do a better job. There are crimes in society that there should be no tolerance for.
–Beaver County Sheriff Cody Black
The woman was charged in Grand County Justice Court with two counts of criminal defamation and two counts of electronic communication harassment, all class B misdemeanors.
Although the case resulted in only misdemeanor charges, Bell says his department put in months of investigation and a lot of work into what he called a "difficult" case. Ultimately, it was discovered that two families who were already acquainted with each other were involved.
"We were happy to do it because a young woman was being harassed and bullied, and we won't tolerate that," he said, while also admitting,"it's frustrating that it took this much time and work."
In Highland, police were eventually able to have the Instagram account taken down. But not before posts accusing some teachers of illegal activity and some students of being racist were made. Police say their investigation into finding out who was responsible for the social media account is ongoing, and that person could face potential charges for online harassment and defamation.
In Beaver County, Black says his office has leads in its ongoing investigation and is currently partnering with an outside agency task force. He says while his office is dealing with a specific case in his community, the problem is larger than just his county.
"The best thing we can do is hunt these guys and lock them away," Black said.
But when it comes to preventing this type of activity from happening in the first place, the sheriff says he doesn't have the answer. Even if a person controls what pictures they post on social media, they can't control what others do.
For starters, Black says he would like to see no leniency for sentences handed down to people convicted of manufacturing or possessing child sex abuse material.
"There are laws in place; there are laws in place that we can hold these people accountable," he said. "We all need to do a better job. There are crimes in society that there should be no tolerance for."
And as predators find new ways to violate young victims, Black says lawmakers need to keep up to speed on the changing environment.
"Everyone involved is trying to catch up and make sure there are laws on the books that are specific to this type of stuff," he said, adding that people who commit "these type of actives" need to be "held accountable to the max."
Likewise, Bell said, "We will do what we have to do to stop" cases of online harassment in his community. But he notes, "We would love more tools and ways to handle it more quickly."
"Law enforcement is learning how to handle it," Bell said. "We have a lot of learning to do when it comes to technology and ways people are being harassed and bullied nowadays. It is difficult to keep up with."
What parents can do
Bell says parents can also play an important role by paying attention to their child's social media habits and influencing how they use social media. But he says it's also difficult to try and tell a child to "just ignore" it when people say mean things online.
"The sticks and stones things doesn't bother you as you get older, but at that age it does," he said.
Michelle Busch-Upwall, a training coordinator for the Internet Crimes Against Children task force who regularly educates parents and children about how to safely navigate the internet, agrees that parental involvement is key.
"I can't stress enough the importance of having open lines of communication with your children. Communication is both important to keep the conversations going as far as safety and educational uses regarding digital use as well as they need a trusted, safe adult they can go to if and when issues occur surrounding things like, extortion, cyberbullying and predators," she said.
Busch-Upwall also encourages teens and others to check the privacy settings on their social media accounts, which she says "are the first line of defense when it comes to these kinds of issues. Nothing is ever going to be 100% safe, but it lessens the chance of them becoming victims."
She also encourages parents to educate themselves about internet safety and what apps their children are using, and try to keep up on the trends and emerging technology, such as virtual reality and AI. Additionally, parents are encouraged to monitor their child's online activity and help them set boundaries.
"Talk to your children about what they should not post, such as personal photos, their location, and personal information about them," Busch-Upwall said.
She cautions parents to look for changes in their child's behavior and be aware of grooming patterns from predators.
"The offender may also groom the parents by persuading them of his or her trustworthiness with children," she said.
As for pictures that are taken without permission off of social media pages and manipulated into something else or posted on other websites, Busch-Upwall admits there isn't an easy solution.
"This is such a difficult issue because anyone can take a photo from anything: social media, texts, emails, etc. ... That's why we encourage privacy settings so that at least that somewhat protects them from anyone being able to get into their accounts. The problem is the ones that they are sending to each other that can be reposted or used anywhere by anyone. We let kids know that when they send an image, they lose complete control of where that image goes," she said.
A helpful website, Busch-Upwall says, can be found at takeitdown.ncmec.org. The Internet Crimes Against Children task force can be contacted at utahicac@agutah.gov or 801-281-1211.
