Non-consensual sexual content among most severe online harms: Study

Singaporeans ranked non-con-sensual sexual content, promotion of dangerous behaviours like self-harm, and targeted harassment as among the most harmful online behaviours from a list of 16 harms, according to new research by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS).

- Lee Li Ying Correspondent

The study, released on Oct 22, also indicated that some harms such as cyber bullying and catfishing have been normalised by younger respondents under 35, highlighting the need for more public education, said the researchers. Catfishing refers to the practice of luring someone into a relationship with a fake persona.

The yearlong study, conducted between June 2024 and May 2025, involved a review of laws and social media platform rules, focus group studies and in-depth interviews with victims and supporters, and a survey of 600 Singaporeans and permanent residents.

Funded by the Ministry of Digital Development and Information, the study examined how Singaporeans perceive the severity of a wide range of harms, and what they make of existing laws, platform policies and public education efforts.

Researchers first found there was a broad consensus that child sexual exploitation and abuse, violent or terrorism-related content, and content supporting vice and organised crime were the most severe online harms.

However, there were other online harms where there were more nuanced opinions, and perceptions of severity also differed across demographics.

This list of 16 online harms, including acts such as doxing, impersonation and cyber bullying, was evaluated using a survey with 600 respondents. Participants were presented with 12 sets of questions.