An increase has also been recorded in minors accessing child pornography, which has risen by 130 per cent.
The figures were published in the final report of the Working Group on social media and minors, chaired by the Undersecretary of Justice, Anna Macina.
The group had been active for a year, hosting debates and hearings that discussed the data recorded from monitoring the under-18 demographic in Italy.
The report suggests that the increase could be attributed to the extra time children have spent online during the pandemic.
A multitude of institutions, businesses, academics and experts were brought before the group, including Google, Youtube, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, in particular.
Several suggestions have been put forward by the group in light of the report’s figures, including mandatory age verification to prevent users under the age of 10 from accessing certain platforms.
Macina hopes that the suggested measures can be implemented as soon as possible.
“While access to the internet is a right that we must guarantee to minors, they’re interacting with others in digital environments that are risky, and they themselves may not be able to perceive the danger,” she said in a statement to the press.
“These are children who still need their parents to help them cross the street and the current technology that is in place to keep them safe is outdated – we must be able to keep up.
“This is an issue not only in Italy but in other countries as well.”
A concerning new trend has also emerged from the report, that of children spending money on online games.
Around 43 per cent of teenagers have made, or regularly make, purchases using their parents’ credits cards.
