Europe is at risk of normalizing offensive and criminal behavior on the Internet by young people. Research supported by the European Union found that one in four 16- to 19-year-olds have trolled someone online. Also, one out of three have been a part of digital piracy.
Research found that this type of criminal and risky behavior has increased among youth aged 16 to 19 in nine countries of Europe including Britain. This survey was done on 8 thousand youth. It revealed that one in eight have harassed someone online, while one in 10 have been part of some form of hate speech or hacking. One in five engage in sexting.
Researchers also found that four out of 10 youth have used the Internet to watch porn. Research co-author Professor Julia Davidson said so many young people in Europe are involved in some form of cybercrime that online low-level crime and offensive behavior on the internet have become normal.
This survey was conducted on the youth of Britain, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Norway and Romania. Spain ranks first in terms of cyber-deviance, Romania second, Netherlands third and Germany fourth with 72%. Cyber-deviance refers to engaging in criminal or risky behavior online.
Professor Davidson said that 75% of men who took part in the survey admitted that they had committed some form of cybercrime. While 65% women have also been involved in cybercrime. This should be seen as an alarm bell. This kind of behavior of the youth can prove to be dangerous for the common man.
