Cyber Safety
Omegle: Hey kids! Wanna chat with strangers?
Family Zone cyber expert Taryn Wren of ySafe took chat app Omegle for a test drive this week.
This is a screenshot of what happened 15 seconds in.
Well, what do you expect from an app that uses the tagline “Talk to strangers!”
Here’s how the platform, which has surged in popularity during the pandemic, describes itself:
Omegle is a great way to meet new friends, even while practicing social distancing. When you use Omegle, we pick someone else at random and let you talk one-on-one. To help you stay safe, chats are anonymous unless you tell someone who you are (not suggested!), and you can stop a chat at any time. Predators have been known to use Omegle, so please be careful.
What could possibly go wrong? But wait, it gets worse.
You don't need an app to use Omegle on your phone or tablet! The web site works great on mobile.
That means it can be tricky to see if your child is using it.
Omegle is free and requires no registration. It’s been in operation since 2009 - pre-dating the notorious Chatroulette, which works in a similar way. Both platforms have seen a pandemic-related spike in user numbers, especially among young people doing remote learning and/or facing severe restrictions on real-world socialising.
Omegle in particular has staged a massive comeback.
Proof that Omegle really does perform some moderation ... for what it's worth.
And that’s not surprising, notes law student Jess Meier in techdirt.com. “After 100+ days of quarantine,” she observes, “anything that recreates at least a semblance of interaction with humans, not under the same roof, is absolutely enticing.”
“Omegle’s employees likely know that a primary use case of the service is sex.”
The platform’s reputation for smut, stalking and grooming has been well established for many years. Says Meier, “Omegle’s employees likely know that a primary use case of the service is sex.” Visitors to the website will be struck that the developers not only admit these problems - they practically brag about them.
That said, the platform has taken some steps to improve in the years since it was a naughty sleep-over staple. The adult “unmoderated section” warns - or announces - that sexual content will be encountered and, for what it’s worth, requires users to acknowledge they are 18 or order to enter.
It has also recently added a “College student chat” with an actual verification process via .edu email addresses.
To use even the moderated sections of Omegle, underage users must be 13+ with parental permission. Again, for what it’s worth - which, given that that “permission” is unverified, is next to nothing.
Omegle meets TikTok
Omegle has also picked up speed on the tailwinds of the TikTok phenomenon. “Many TikTok stars have been using Omegle to surprise fans who are looking for fellow enthusiasts on the site through its filters,” according to a recent New York Times investigation. “Often, the influencers live-stream their fans’ reactions on TikTok.”
And reacting to the porn inevitably encountered on Omegle is now part of the “fun.”
“There’s the shock factor of it all,” 18-year-old YouTuber Nailea Devora explains. “There’s a lot of sexual porn stuff. We just film our reactions, like, ‘OMG I didn’t want to see that!
People are intrigued to see what happens next and what the next stranger might do. I think the majority of us are just teenagers looking to meet people, but it can get weird and dark.”
“It’s basically the most confusing and upsetting website to exist,” admits YouTube star Emma Chamberlain. Despite this - or rather because of it - she decided to hold her virtual birthday party there in May.
Reference: https://www.familyzone.com/anz/families/blog/omegle-chat-with-strangers-kids