Gloucestershire police have been warning parents on social media about the need to talk to their children about sending naked pictures.

Recent reports have shown children as young as eight in the county have shared nude images of themselves via social media, mobile phone apps or over text.

Over the past week police have posted videos on both Facebook and Twitter which discussed why teenagers might be sexting/sending nude selfies, how to talk to them about it, when to be worried and what to do in the event that something goes wrong.

Digital Investigations and Intelligence Detective Inspector Brett Mallon said: "Sexting is now very common amongst teenagers, particularly through apps such as Snapchat, with research suggesting as many as one in five children aged 12 or over having done this.

"Children may think that sending these images and videos is harmless and won't go further than the person they've sent them to.

"However almost every single week, I've seen this go wrong, with the pictures shared onward and seen by everybody at school, friends or family.

"We've recently seen children as young as eight have their images shared across the internet in just a few hours, with limited control in stopping it.

"Too often sharing just one picture will lead to being blackmailed for more - or doing things that you don't want to."

Over a six-week period (November 20, 2017 to the first week of January) there have been at least 12 incidents reported to the Constabulary where sexting has gone wrong and pictures have been shared and circulated.

Anyone sending a naked picture or video of a child is breaking the law – even if it is of themselves. If you send on a nude picture of your classmate, this is breaking the law and bullying.

This is to protect children from putting themselves in harms' way – we do not want to criminalise children and will treat children who have been pressured into this as victims. We want to educate and offer support.

However, those people who break others trust and share content given by a boyfriend or girlfriend; or who pressure and bully other children into sharing nude pictures, are part of a bullying problem that is often devastating.

It is all too easy for a childish action to lead to being investigated by the police and a criminal record.

Our campaign aims to encourage parents and carers to engage with their children about the risks they face if they choose to take and send explicit images.

If you send nude selfies you immediately lose control of them and many images inevitably end up being shared, spread on the internet, seen by many and fall into the wrong hands.

This can lead to children and teenagers being bullied, blackmailed, suffering unwanted attention, emotional distress and in the most extreme cases - suicide.

DI Mallon said: "As a parent we mustn't be naive in thinking that this won't happen to our own children. Most 12 to 15-year-olds now own a smartphone and average three hours online every day.

"There are plenty of opportunities for children, especially teenagers, to share explicit content without us knowing.

"They can be under intense pressure to conform and are often told 'everyone does it' - this shouldn't be a subject that they feel too embarrassed to talk about with us. Children have to know that they can talk to someone if something does go wrong.

"I understand that it can often feel awkward or difficult to start these conversations with our children, but we have to have these discussions to protect them.

"There are plenty of resources online, such as the Thinkuknow nude selfie videos we've shared, that can help parents do this."

Over the next few weeks the police will be sharing more information about the dangers of teenagers sending nude selfies as well as asking secondary schools across Gloucestershire to help spread the message.

Parents and carers who have not seen the four Thinkuknow videos shared online last week can view them, and other supporting materials, by visiting: http://bit.ly/talkaboutnudes.

Any parent or carer who is worried about the way someone has been communicating with their child online can visit the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) command website at: http://bit.ly/ceophelp.

Any child or teenager who is concerned about this should speak to your parents, school or police by calling 101 or emailing 101@gloucestershire.police.uk.