The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, A pr il 28 ,2 02 2 | 18 (289) 812-8952 shelfgenie.com TRANSFORM YOUR HOME AND UPGRADE YOUR STORAGE Call for FREE Design Consultation Independently owned and operated franchise. © 2022 ShelfGenie SPV LLC. All rights Reserved. - Lifetime Warranty - Full Service Design & Install. - Custom to the Millimetre Come Visit Us At 289-812-8952 The increase in online interaction created by CO- VID-19 has generated a spike in girls and young women being subjected to what's called technology- facilitated sexual violence (TFSV). The term refers to everything from sharing someone's nude photos without their consent to sending unsolicited pic- tures of one's own genitals. TFSV, a range of harm- ful and sexually aggressive online behaviours, affects 88 per cent of all Canadian university undergraduate women. Younger teens are also affected by these beha- viours. Survivors have few legal options, and have recently been found to be at higher risk of suicide. This high- lights the need for more ed- ucation and legal reform around these acts, which some legal experts say should be criminal. EARLY EXPOSURES "No matter how much you think you're protecting your child, they can still get to them," says Heather Mackie of Vancouver, B.C., whose name has been changed to protect the identity of her daughter. Two years ago, Mackie's then 12-year-old daughter, Emma (not her real name), created an Instagram ac- count for her fictional character on Roblox, a pop- ular online gaming plat- form whose users are most- ly under 16 years old. What Emma next received in her inbox shocked her, and her mother. "It was a picture of a man's genitals," says Mack- ie. Emma was visibly up- set. "She deleted it and blocked him. We then dele- ted the account." Experiences like Em- ma's are common. A recent Canadian survey of univer- sity-aged women found 6.4 per cent had their first ex- perience with online sexu- al harassment between 12 and 14 years of age. Experts differ slightly in how they classify forms of TFSV, with one classifi- cation including image- based sexual abuse (non- consensual sharing of vic- tims' images), video voy- eurism and unsolicited sexual images, which is what Emma received. Another definition adds online sexual aggression and coercion, including ex- tortion, blackmail and bribery, as well as online Online sexually violent behaviour can include sharing intimate images without consent. Dreamstime photo LEGAL REFORM IS NEEDED TO PROTECT YOUNG WOMEN FROM THE GROWING THREATS OF ONLINE SEXUAL VIOLENCE OPINION ANTHONY FONG See - page 19 RESOURCES Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868 kidshelpphone.ca Assaulted Women's Help Line: 1-866-863-0511 awhl.org Crisis Services Canada: 1-833-456-4566 crisisservicescanada.ca