@itvnews: A warning this report contains distressing details. The social media app Snapchat is being used by paedophiles and violent criminals to target thousands of children a year, an ITV News investigation has found. Across 37 police forces, there were more than 100,000 offences involving the app over the past five years. In the cases where ages were provided, 6 in 10 of the victims were children or teenagers. It’s not always clear how Snapchat was involved, but the crimes include multiple cases of rape and sexual assault. A Snapchat spokesperson told ITV News that the company is "working hard to combat" sexual exploitation, "including by continuously evolving our safety mechanisms as criminals change their tactics." #snapchat #onlinesafety #children #socialmedia