A warning has been issued over a social media app aimed at young people.
Created 'to make it easy for Gen Z to expand their social circles online with new friends from around the world', the Yubo app has 60 million users and has been described as similar to tinder, but targeted at children.
National Online Safety (NOS), a provider of online safety e-learning and resources for schools, is advising children and young people not to use the app - a message that Lancashire Young People's Services has this week been conveying to schools.
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The free app, which is the first social app in the world to introduce 100% user-age verification, is reported as having 'flimsy age gates, inappropriate content, livestream risks, the potential for bullying, extensive access and a 'gateway' effect that could lead to children exploring similarly designed apps not intended for a younger audience'.
The minimum age is 13, but those behind it say its 'age gates' are used to put users in 'different communities' to limit the interaction between teens and adults.
But in a poster sent to schools, NOS claims that the social media platform has had problems with inappropriate content being displayed to children and teens and youngsters being exposed to sexual harassment, racism and bullying. It also claims that many of its chats have referenced self-harm, suicide and drug use.
Among its other concerns is that children can launch live video streams which strangers can view, and that Yubo requires access to a user's microphone and GPS, which means they are potentially revealing highly-sensitive information including their location.
It says that new users have to provide personal details such as their name, date of birth and phone number, and that 'represents a clear risk'.
Techcrunch.com says that the French startup is particularly popular with young people who want to meet new people, play games together and hang out together in video chat rooms. It says that the app uses age-estimation technology so that when a user is required to confirm their age, the phone camera takes a photo and a short video of the user’s face that can verify their age with what it claims is 98.9% accuracy.
Yubo's chief executive officer Sacha Lazimi and chief operations officer Marc-Antoine Durand said in a statement on its website: "Safety is at the core of every decision made at Yubo. As a leading platform for young people to socialise online, we are constantly evolving and upgrading our safety features to stay up-to-date in an ever-changing online world.
"Our industry-leading safety tools and 24/7 team of safety specialists are designed to help everyone have a positive experience on Yubo. We’re proud to be the first major social media platform to introduce technology to verify the ages of all our users, and the first social platform to implement real-time intervention and audio moderation on livestreams.
"We investigate every report submitted by our users and take action in response to all verified violations of our Community Guidelines, while also educating our users through real-time pop-ups that encourage behavioural change.
"Whether you’re a parent, a carer or an educator, this Safety Centre gives you the resources and advice you need to support your children or students on Yubo. If any of our users have specific questions, our Help Centre is the place to go. Our whole team is committed to protecting, supporting and educating young people and building a digital space that they – and you – can trust."
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