BY CHRISTINA BOYLE
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Wednesday, December 10th 2008, 5:57 PM
Whatever happened to writing your loved one a letter?
Growing numbers of young girls are sending racy images of themselves to guys through cyberspace, according to a new survey.
More than two in 10 tech-savvy teenagers admit to e-mailing or texting nude, or semi-nude photos and posting them on online.
The research shows most snaps are meant solely for the recipient, but they often get passed around among friends with one-third of teen boys and one-quarter of teen girls saying they have seen other people's raunchy shots.
"It's somewhat alarming," said Bill Albert of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, which did the research with CosmoGirl.com
"Sending or posting sexually suggestive content, both images or messages, is much more prevalent than most people recognize."
"I think with a lot of young people, it's a time of experimentation in many areas, the problem is there's no turning back once you press send."
"This to me is like a cyber tattoo."
The online survey questioned 1,280 teens and 20-somethings about their sex-tech habits and found saucy cyber snaps is not just a trend among young girls.
One in five male teenagers said they have engaged in "sex-ting." Thirty-three percent of 20- to 26-year-olds do it as well.
The online behavior can spill into other areas of life, with nearly 25% of teens saying swapping sexy photos makes them more aggressive and forward in person. About about 33% admit it makes dating and hooking up more likely.
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Wednesday, December 10th 2008, 5:57 PM
Whatever happened to writing your loved one a letter?
Growing numbers of young girls are sending racy images of themselves to guys through cyberspace, according to a new survey.
More than two in 10 tech-savvy teenagers admit to e-mailing or texting nude, or semi-nude photos and posting them on online.
The research shows most snaps are meant solely for the recipient, but they often get passed around among friends with one-third of teen boys and one-quarter of teen girls saying they have seen other people's raunchy shots.
"It's somewhat alarming," said Bill Albert of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, which did the research with CosmoGirl.com
"Sending or posting sexually suggestive content, both images or messages, is much more prevalent than most people recognize."
"I think with a lot of young people, it's a time of experimentation in many areas, the problem is there's no turning back once you press send."
"This to me is like a cyber tattoo."
The online survey questioned 1,280 teens and 20-somethings about their sex-tech habits and found saucy cyber snaps is not just a trend among young girls.
One in five male teenagers said they have engaged in "sex-ting." Thirty-three percent of 20- to 26-year-olds do it as well.
The online behavior can spill into other areas of life, with nearly 25% of teens saying swapping sexy photos makes them more aggressive and forward in person. About about 33% admit it makes dating and hooking up more likely.
