Launch of Facebook 'panic button' prompts surge in abuse reports

London, Aug 13 (ANI): Ever since the launch of the Facebook 'panic button' last month, more than 200 users of the social networking site have reported suspicious behaviour.

According to the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (Ceop), which created the application, the figures represent a seven-fold increase in reports.

Facebook, which had resisted the idea at first, welcomed the figures and Ceop's move to make the Internet safer.

"It's great news that so many users have interacted with ClickCeop by downloading the application or by liking their page," the BBC quoted Joanna Shields of the firm as saying.

"There is no single answer to making the Internet safer but Ceop have taken a great step forward by setting up their ClickCeop page," she stated.

The Ceop application was launched on July 11, and the latest figures show that 211 people have used the site's ClickCeop button since then, compared with 28 users in the month before its launch.

A spokesperson for Ceop said that all of the reports had been "acted upon" and had prompted a "number of ongoing investigations".

The organisation said that the application, which allows users to report abuse to Ceop with one click, has been downloaded more than 55,000 times.

The spokesperson added that Ceop deals with between 500 and 700 reports every month from across the web.

"Around 50 percent come from the public," she said.

"Other sources may be police agencies here and abroad, online moderators, worried parents and NGOs," she added. (ANI)