Sexting & Selfies

Sometimes known as nudes, sexting is when someone takes a sexual image of themselves (either naked, partially naked, or in underwear) and sends it to a friend, partner or stranger using some form of technology such as their phone.

Sexting can also be sexual texts or videos. You have to be 18 to send a sext. The law states that a picture of anyone under the age of 18 that is “explicit” is illegal as it is an indecent image of a child.

If you send a sext of someone else who is under 18, that is also a crime.

People sext for lots of different reasons, including:

• They feel turned on/aroused and want to send it to a sexual partner or someone they fancy
• They have been asked to send one by someone else
• As a confidence booster, or because you want someone’s approval

Sometimes people are blackmailed or pressured to send a sext when they don’t want to. Some people also feel peer pressure to send sexts because they think everyone else is doing it.

Your body is something you can control. If you ever feel pressured to send a sext, speak to someone you trust or get more information on childline website

The Zipit app helps you to respond to unwanted chats with the power of GIFs. If someone’s trying to get you to send them naked images of yourself, use the fully updated Zipit app to keep the situation under control.