Children as young as 12 have been sending naked pictures of themselves on Snapchat at school
Police say some of those involved may have been placed on the Sex Offenders Register
CHILDREN as young as 12 have been sending naked pictures of themselves on Snapchat during school.
The explicit images were taken and circulated on the app, an offence police warned could carry a ten-year prison sentence.
Those involved might also have been placed on the Sex Offenders Register.
But the boys and girls from Saddleworth School, Gtr Manchester, were let off because they “didn’t realise the implications” of what they had done.
However, police held an assembly at the secondary school, calling on parents to be more vigilant and check their children’s phones.
The naked and semi-naked images had been taken by more than one pupil and were sent to other Snapchat users, who screen-grabbed the pictures and forwarded them on.
Greater Manchester Police warned that anyone taking an image, receiving it, keeping it or distributing it was breaking the law.
A spokesman added: “The sending of the image often sets off a chain of emotions from regret to despair and embarrassment and the long-term effects weigh very heavy on impressionable young minds.”
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Officers fear it is not an isolated incident and will be working with other schools in the area to tackle the threat.
Oldham councillor Amanda Chadderton said the school “acted swiftly” to alert police to the issue.