1 family hopes new law to protect children online prevents tragedies like theirs

A new law aims to strengthen reporting requirements for technology companies to combat online predators seeking to exploit children. One father told CBS News he hopes the law will save children like his son, who died by suicide after being implicated in a “sextortion” scheme when he was 17.

John Demay said what started as a seemingly innocuous encounter on Instagram quickly turned deadly for his teenage son Jordan. Demay said her son was solicited by a man, posing as a woman, who asked him to send compromising photos. Jordan did this and then the scammer ordered him to pay – threatening to release the images in another way.

“Ultimately, it was a question of money at that point. And I believe they started with about a thousand dollars,” Demay said. “They were building collages with his photo and making him believe they were sending it.”

“He told them he was going to kill himself, and the perpetrator said, ‘Well, you better do it quick or we’re going to make you do it,’” Demay continued. “And then, at 3:45 a.m., Jordan shot himself in his bedroom.”

Jordan’s family was distraught and the horror only increased when they realized what he was going through. Demay said he had “no idea what happened” on social media.

“You know, there were no signs. There was no depression, there was nothing,” Demay said.

The “Report Law”, signed into law by President Joe Biden last month, aims to help children like Jordan. The law requires social media companies to report crimes involving sex trafficking, grooming, or grooming of children to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s cyber tip line. The law also increases penalties for those who do not flag such content.

Last year, the Center received more than 36 million reports of suspected child sexual exploitation on its cyber hotline.

The legislation was sponsored by Democratic Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff and Republican Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn. The Internet has been “the Wild West,” Blackburn said, especially for children and other vulnerable users.

“You can’t sell alcohol to kids. You can’t sell them a pornographic magazine. You can’t take them to a strip show,” Blackburn said. “If you did that, the police would come in and padlock your business, they would drag you to the police station, they would book you and you would be fined. But there was nothing in the virtual space.”

The law is the first to be enacted since Highly successful Senate hearing in early 2024. The hearing focused on online child exploitation. At the time, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerburg issued a rare apology to families in the crowd. Demay was one of those watching. The new law, he believes, is the first step towards creating a safer Internet.

“We have to do something. We have to get comfortable with small steps if that’s what it takes, but I find some peace in that,” Demay said.

Ossoff said he takes online exploration seriously and plans to do more to make cyberspace safer for vulnerable users.

“Look, I have a two-year-old girl at home and it’s every parent’s worst nightmare,” Ossoff said. “We have to improve safety. We have to hold technology companies accountable to make it safe for kids.”