Washington, Oct 21 Popular live streaming platform Twitch poses risks to minors who can interact with adult strangers and donate money to streamers without the supervision of a parent or guardian, according to new research.
The study found that young users feel a false sense of safety on the platform, as a significant proportion were willing to reveal personal information despite having no knowledge of who might be listening.
The nature of the live streaming platform makes it particularly risky, as there is no way to take back information that minor streamers reveal while on Twitch.
“Twitch is an exciting platform; however, it may present hidden dangers for minor users,” said Ruth Milanaik, principal investigator of the study.
“Parents need to supervise all interactions on this platform to best protect their child,” Milanaik added.
To conduct the research, trained coders entered Twitch.tv, searched popular video games and scrolled to view current live streams that appeared to be conducted by minors and who had their cameras on and showed their faces.
The participants analysed data collected on 100 minor Twitch streamers with 1,755,452 followers.
Youth streamers provided their names (47 per cent) and stated their location 50 per cent of the time.
About 38 per cent provided detailed schedules of when they would be live, and 64 per cent linked and encouraged viewers to follow their other public social media.
Viewers were able to donate money to 37 per cent of streamers.
“The donation system is quite scary to me. The idea that anyone can donate money to streamers of any age seems very manipulative, and I do not think that it is widely known of the disturbing ways this could be utilized. Twitch must create a safer platform,” said Fiona Dubrosa, visiting scholar at Cohen's Children Medical Center, Northwell Health in New York.
The researchers noted that popular websites like Twitch can serve as a breeding ground for voyeuristic consumption of underage streamers, and encourage pediatricians and caregivers to be aware of the potential dangers to children.
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