Do your kids use the Wizz app to chat?
Cybertip.ca is warning parents and caregivers about the app posing sextortion risks.
In a news release, Cybertip.ca, a tipline for reporting the online sexual abuse and exploitation of children, operated by the Canadian Centre for Child Protection (C3P), recommends parents and caregivers remove the app called Wizz from their children’s phones.
“Wizz is a chat app owned by a Paris-based company that combines features similar to those seen on Tinder (swiping through profiles) and Omegle, an online service designed to pair strangers in video chats which was recently shutdown following a lawsuit over child sexual abuse and exploitation,” reads the release from Cybertip.
Cybertip says they have received over 180 reports concerning Wizz since 2021. Of those reports, over 90% concerned sextortion with males overwhelmingly being victimized in cases where gender was known. Cybertip says the majority of the victims reported were between 15 and 17 years old.
According to the release, Wizz allows users to share info on profiles which sextorters can leverage by matching the users. Wizz also allows users to feature other social media profiles, making it easy to find users on other platforms.
While Cybertip notes Wizz has an age verification process, they said that female Cybertip analysts between 23 and 25 were able to create accounts posing as 16-year-old males.
“Cybertip.ca recommends all parents and caregivers consider removing this app from their youth’s phone, and talk about the risks the use of Wizz may present to their teens,” noted the release.
Cybertip.ca has more information about sextortion and ways to support a child if they have been victimized. You can also report instances of online sexploitation on the site. Youth can also access resources if they have been sexually victimized at needhelpnow.ca.
