Most of us love meeting interesting people, making connections and forging new friendships. It’s this exact experience that OmeTV promises: letting users interact with people across the globe via randomly connected video chats. At their best, apps like this let you talk to some amazing people you’d never have met otherwise. At worst, they connect you with unpleasant, dangerous characters, who are interested in far less innocent activities than talking.
OmeTV is popular with younger users, despite coming with clear warnings that it’s intended for over-18s only. As our NOS #WakeUpWednesday guide outlines, this presents obvious dangers to any children and young people who do use the app, with reports of predators trying to exploit OmeTV for their own ends.
As of 2023, OmeTV hosts a colossal community, with users numbering more than a million on mobile devices alone – and a further hundred thousand via their site. With such a large global community, there’s a reasonable chance that users might be matched with someone who could genuinely be a potential friend.
It’s equally likely, however, that they’ll also encounter some unsavoury individuals who have the potential to endanger any young people they meet online. This week’s #WakeUpWednesday guide explores the risks of OmeTV, detailing what trusted adults can do to protect any child who ignores or is unaware of the app’s 18+ age rating.
