“I have been warning in my talks for years that TikTok is a factory for paedophiles and child abusers.” Sandra Sedano Colom, a lecturer at the University of the Balearic Islands (UIB), delivered a stark warning in Ibiza on Saturday, just one day after prosecutors filed a legal complaint against the social media platform over the possible circulation of child sexual abuse material.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office has called for the “urgent and immediate” removal of content reported by the Maldita.es Foundation. The organisation identified 1,183 posts containing explicit child sexual abuse material on TikTok, with a combined 48 million views, as well as accounts dedicated to sharing such content.
“Let them try, please. I don’t know how they are going to manage to delete all those videos, but please, let them delete them,” Sedano said, referring to the request made by Elvira Tejada de la Fuente, the Public Prosecutor responsible for Cybercrime.
In Sedano’s view, greater responsibility must be placed on the major technology companies themselves. “It is extremely difficult to pursue all of this. I believe we should start with the companies and demand genuine accountability,” she explained after her presentation. She also warned that Telegram is another platform where child sexual abuse material circulates with little apparent restraint.
During her lecture, entitled Violence Against Women in the 21st Century Through the Algorithm, Sedano examined the grooming of minors, blackmail involving intimate images and other forms of digital sexual violence.
Her presentation formed part of the conference What Remains Unseen: Gender-Based Violence and Feminist Resistance in Island Communities, organised by the Associació de Dones Progressistes d’Eivissa and held at the Casal d’Igualtat in Ibiza.
From online gaming to sexual exploitation: how predators target minors
Sedano explained how an adult can gradually gain a child’s trust through social media or online gaming platforms. This process, known as online grooming, typically develops in several stages: initial contact, affectionate messages such as “I’m the only one who understands you”, gifts or virtual currency, demands for secrecy and attempts to isolate the child from trusted adults.
Sexual requests or proposals to meet in person may follow. Fake profiles are frequently used to conceal the perpetrator’s identity.
Another form of abuse is sextortion, which involves threatening to distribute intimate images unless the victim provides money, further photographs or agrees to meet. It can begin with a photograph shared in confidence or a recorded video call before escalating into threats such as: “I’ll send it to your followers.”
Sedano also described how traffickers can recruit victims for sexual exploitation through a practice known as digital loverboy grooming. In these cases, a perpetrator poses as a romantic partner, using affection as a means of manipulation.
Contact often begins through Instagram, TikTok or WhatsApp before progressing to gifts, emotional dependence and attempts to distance the victim from their family.
“The recruiter does not present himself as a client, but as a boyfriend. The relationship is the gateway,” she warned.
She also referred to the cases of Almendralejo and Felanitx, in 2023 and 2024 respectively, which highlighted another growing danger: the use of artificial intelligence to create fake nude images of minors.
Other practices discussed included persistent online harassment, identity theft and controlling behaviour within relationships through passwords, geolocation tracking and isolation from friends.
Sedano explained that these forms of abuse are often described using English-language terminology, but behind the technical expressions lies a series of serious dangers facing children and teenagers whenever they enter online environments.
The real harm of digital violence, often hidden or unreported
Turning to the figures, Sedano recalled that one in three women aged between 18 and 24 in Spain has experienced online harassment, while almost half a million women have been pressured into sending sexual images.
She also highlighted that more than 160,000 women have been victims of the non-consensual distribution of intimate images, whether genuine or manipulated.
Dating apps are also part of this troubling picture. A study by the Young Women’s Federation (Federación Mujeres Jóvenes) found that one in five female Tinder users who had arranged dates through the platform reported being forced into sexual activity through explicit violence.
Other women described being pressured to continue sexual activity after wanting to stop, attempts to record them without consent or the removal of a condom without their knowledge or agreement, a practice known as stealthing.
Sedano stressed that many of these behaviours are not even recognised by victims as forms of violence.
The expert also strongly criticised the language of empowerment associated with another internationally popular platform, OnlyFans.
“I do it because I want to, because it empowers me, and on top of that I’m going to make a lot of money,” she said ironically.
In her view, the label “content creator” makes the commercial sexual industry sound more acceptable than it otherwise would.
“It sounds very bad to say prostitute or porn actress; it sounds much better to say I’m a content creator,” she remarked.
Social media restrictions and education: finding the right balance
Sedano argued in favour of restricting children’s access to social media but warned that prohibition alone would not solve the problem.
She pointed to Australia’s pioneering restrictions, noting that some teenagers had reportedly learned to apply make-up to create fake wrinkles on their faces in an attempt to fool age-recognition systems.
“I’m not against banning it. I believe we have reached a point where our children are exposed to such a high level of danger and risk that we need to introduce restrictions,” she said.
The conference concluded with a warning that the normalisation of digital abuse makes many forms of aggression harder to recognise and report.
Expressions such as “it’s just a joke” or “it’s the price you pay for being on social media” serve, according to Sedano, to minimise violence and shift responsibility onto victims.
“It’s not virtual. The harm is real. These are the same patriarchal forms of violence we have always had,” the university lecturer concluded.
Meanwhile, Montserrat García Cuenca, president of Dones Progressistes, highlighted another dimension of gender inequality in Ibiza during her opening remarks.
“An overcrowded island like Ibiza makes many women’s problems worse,” she said, referring to issues such as the lack of resources and the high cost of housing.
With the Spanish general election just two weeks away at the time of the conference, she also issued a political appeal: “Women’s rights must never become bargaining chips in any political negotiation.”