Online grooming crimes have more than tripled in Dyfed-Powys since the offence first came into force six years ago, new data compiled by the NSPCC reveals.

Figures provided by all four forces across Wales - Dyfed Powys, Gwent, North Wales and South Wales - show 554 Sexual Communication with a Child offences were recorded in 2023/24 – more than double the 274 recorded in 2017/18.

Meanwhile, the number of online grooming crimes recorded by police forces across the UK has increased by 89 per cent in six years (since 2017/18), with more than 7,000 offences recorded.

In Dyfed-Powys, 19 offences were recorded in 2017/18, rising to 67 in 2023/24.

In North Wales, offences almost doubled from 53 in 2017/18 to 97 in 2023/24.

The 67 online grooming crimes recorded by Dyfed-Powys is the most of any year since the offence came into force, nearly doubling from the 30 recorded the previous year.

Online grooming crimes in North Wales actually fell year-on-year, down from 101 in 2022/23.

The new findings reveal that Snapchat was the most popular platform used by perpetrators to target children online last year, with the messaging app present in almost half (48 per cent) of grooming cases across the UK where the means of communication was disclosed.

Meta platforms were also popular with offenders, featuring in over a quarter of UK recorded cases where a platform was known, with WhatsApp (12 per cent), Facebook and Messenger (10 per cent), and Instagram (six per cent) all being used to abuse children.

NSPCC said that Facebook, WhatsApp, Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok “were all used in cross-platform grooming where the pattern of abuse points to a culture where the first point of contact between children and would-be offenders is on the open web.”

“This can include social media chat apps, video games and messaging apps on consoles, dating sites and chatrooms,” the charity said.

“Children are then encouraged to continue communication on private and encrypted messaging platforms where abuse can proceed undetected.”

Girls are predominantly targeted by offenders for online grooming, making up 81 per cent of total UK recorded cases where gender was known in 2023/24.

The majority targeted were aged between 12 and 15, figures show.

The youngest victim of online grooming in 2023/24 was a five-year-old boy.

Thomas [name changed to protect anonymity] spoke to the NSPCC about being groomed online when he was 14.

Thomas said: “Our first conversation was quite simple.

“I was just chatting.

“The only way I can describe it is like having the most supportive person that you could ever meet. “After about a month, the pressure started to build of him trying to prove that I was gay.

“That’s when he started sending explicit pictures and pressuring me to send images to him.

“I did send him pictures, but I didn’t like it, and I didn’t want to do it anymore.

“He said he had saved the images and would send them to everyone if I stopped sending more pictures.

“There was a constant fear in the back of my mind.

“It wasn’t easy but I managed to block him on all sites and carry on with my life.”

The NSPCC has issued these findings a year on from the Online Safety Act being passed.

The charity is urging Ofcom to significantly strengthen the rules social media platforms must follow to tackle child sexual abuse on their products.

They say the regulator currently puts too much focus on acting after harm has taken place rather than being proactive to ensure the design features of social media apps are not contributing to abuse.

The NSPCC is also calling on the UK Government to strengthen legislation to ensure child sexual abuse is disrupted in private messages such as on Snapchat and WhatsApp.

Sir Peter Wanless, NSPCC Chief Executive, said: “One year since the Online Safety Act became law and we are still waiting for tech companies to make their platforms safe for children.

“We need ambitious regulation by Ofcom who must significantly strengthen their current approach to make companies address how their products are being exploited by offenders.

“It is clear that much of this abuse is taking place in private messaging which is why we also need the UK Government to strengthen the Online Safety Act to give Ofcom more legal certainty to tackle child sexual abuse on the likes of Snapchat and WhatsApp.”

National Police Chief’s Council Lead for Child Protection and Abuse Investigations (CPAI) Becky Riggs said: “The numbers in this NSPCC data are shocking and policing joins partners in urging tech companies and Ofcom to fulfil their legal and moral obligations to keep children safe from harm within the online communities they have created.

“A year on from the Online Safety Act being passed, it is imperative that the responsibility of safeguarding children online is placed with the companies who create spaces for them, and the regulator strengthens rules that social media platforms must follow.

“Policing will not stop in its fight against those who commit these horrific crimes.

“We cannot do this alone, so while we continue to pursue and prosecute those who abuse and exploit children, we repeat our call for more to be done by companies in this space.”

Overall figures show that, UK-wide, online grooming crimes have almost doubled from 3,728 recorded in 2017/18 to 7,062 in 2023/24.

Online grooming crimes have also risen year-on-year, with a five per cent increase from the amount recorded by UK police forces in 2022/23.

More than 41,000 online grooming crimes have been recorded by police forces from across the UK since 2017.

Dyfed-Powys Police said that “children can become victims of abuse on the internet through online games, social networking sites and apps such as Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat, which they can access through devices including tablets, mobile phones and games consoles” and outlined steps to

help protect children while they're online.

Parents and guardians should “encourage them to talk to you about how they use the internet and show you what they do - make sure they know they can come to you for advice.”

They should “have an agreement in place and set boundaries for their internet use, such as when and where they can use their devices and for how long” and “check age ratings that come with games, apps, films and social networks to confirm whether they’re suitable.”

Parents and guardians should make sure they “activate parental controls on your home network and all devices including mobile phones and game consoles” while “safe settings can also be activated on sites such as Google, YouTube and iPlayer.”

They should “get to grips with the blocking and report functions on any gaming sites and make sure they know how to use them” and “make sure they're aware of the risks of sharing images online and that you both know how to remove content should you need to.”

The Online Safety Act was given Royal Assent on 26 October 2023.

Ofcom is planning to release its final children's access assessment guidance in January 2025 as part of the Online Safety Act, with protection of children codes of practice and risk assessment guidance in April 2025.