A non-governmental organisation (NGO), TechSocietal, on Tuesday urged parents to support, rather than punish, children threatened with the non-consensual sharing of intimate images.
Jessica Eni, Legal and Policy Programme Officer at TechSocietal, made the call at an awareness programme held at a church in Lagos under the initiative “Know It. Prevent It. Report It.”
Through the initiative, TechSocietal and its collaborators aim to improve understanding of image-based sexual abuse (IBSA) and online child sexual exploitation and abuse, while promoting safer responses and responsible reporting.
Eni said children threatened with the circulation of nude images needed protection and support, not punishment.
She said parents’ reactions to IBSA could discourage children from reporting abuse or seeking help, particularly if they feared being blamed or punished.
According to Eni, sharing intimate images without consent can perpetuate abuse, even when the person circulating the material did not create it.
She educated parents and children about forms of online sexual abuse, including cyberflashing and online sexual harassment. She also noted that children might recognise harmful online behaviour without knowing how to describe it.
Eni addressed misconceptions about IBSA, saying that consenting to share an intimate image privately did not mean consenting to its wider distribution.
She urged victims to seek confidential support and guidance through appropriate channels rather than remain silent for fear of public exposure.
Eni also urged participants not to create, request, threaten to share or circulate intimate images without consent.
She said using artificial intelligence to create sexualised images of real people without their consent should not be dismissed as a joke or mere entertainment.
Eni encouraged participants to help prevent further harm by refusing to share abusive content and reporting it without subjecting survivors to further humiliation.
During the session, a child recounted how a classmate regularly turned other pupils’ photographs into mocking memes and stickers.
Eni said the account showed how digital tools could be used to ridicule and humiliate others.
The engagement was supported by the African Women Lawyers Association of Nigeria (AWLA Nigeria), an official campaign partner.
