An average of one child in every classroom in the region has received a naked or semi-naked image online from an adult, a survey has revealed.
And one in 50 schoolchildren sent a nude or semi-nude image to an adult, according to the research carried out by the NSPCC.
It comes as the children's charity launches its #WildWestWeb campaign, calling on the government to create an independent regulator for social networks, to force platforms to proactively detect groomers using their sites.
In a survey of nearly 40,000 children, the NSPCC asked young people aged seven to 16 about the risks they face when using the internet.
Peter Wanless, NSPCC chief executive said: "Grooming can no longer be shrugged off as secondary to other online crimes. It is happening now, it is happening to very young children, it is happening so frequently that it's becoming normalised, and it is not only coming from adult strangers, but also from known adults. Social networks have become a gateway for child abuse.
"The NSPCC has launched a petition calling on Digital Secretary Jeremy Wright and Home Secretary Sajid Javid to put an end to the Wild West Web. We need tough regulation of social networks to make sure there are fundamental protections for children in place whatever sites they’re using.”
The petition can be signed at http://bit.ly/2BTX0Bm
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