On 2 August 2013, Hannah Smith died. This 14-year-old Leicestershire schoolgirl, described by her family as bubbly, happy and self-confident, took her own life amid claims she was bullied online and the victim of “trolling”.
The heartache of losing a child in such a desperately cruel and tragic way and the impact on her loving family is difficult to imagine. Her father, David Smith, responded like any parent would, with calls for tighter regulation for the industry and a change in the law to protect vulnerable youngsters from online abuse. It was a cry that struck a chord with parents across the nation and one that reverberated all the way to government. On 8 August, on BBC Breakfast, Prime Minister David Cameron said that the operators of the sites “have got to step up to the plate and clean up their act and show some responsibility…it’s not acceptable what is allowed to happen on these sites. It’s their responsibility and those posting these hateful remarks first and foremost. If websites don’t clean up their act, and don’t sort themselves out then we as members of the general public have got to stop using these particular sites. Boycott them.”1
A surge of articles followed, criticising the social media site involved, Latvian-based Ask.fm, for not intervening when the comments were made, for not monitoring activity, for not providing moderation or reporting routes, and for not engaging with relevant child protection organisations.
On 6 May 2014, the Coroner’s Inquest into Hannah’s death was published and reached a number of conclusions that had significant implications, not only parents, but for all those involved in the welfare and protection of children and young people. The police evidence suggested that no third party was involved and that the balance of probability was that Hannah herself had posted the messages. Her death was recorded as suicide.2
The real-world impact of online technologies
There is no doubt that the verdict has been a very difficult one for her family to come to terms with, and yet this tragic case has catalysed a realisation that online technologies are an intrinsic component of young people’s cultural space and have as much impact on them as the physical world on which we focus much of our safeguarding intervention.
Whilst the criticism that Ask.fm faced in the months after Hannah’s death was not entirely justified (the site did have reporting routes and moderation and worked closely with organisations like the UK Safer Internet Centre Professional’s Online Safety helpline to remove illegal, defamatory or harmful content), the social network has since made significant improvements in promoting those reporting routes in a clearer and more accessible way. In fact, its recent acquisition by new owners Ask.com (no relation) has prompted a high profile focus on online safeguarding. Their CEO Doug Leeds recently stated: “...we’re not going to run a bullying site … If we can’t [fix Ask.fm] we’ll shut it down.”3