Mexico City, March 11 (EFE)
The Mexican government announced on Wednesday its first collaboration agreement with digital platforms such as Google, Meta, and TikTok to prevent and address digital violence, a phenomenon that affects millions of people in the country and particularly impacts young women.
The Secretary for Women, Citlalli Hernández, presented the agreement during the presidential conference and explained that the objective is to strengthen prevention, attention to victims and cooperation with technology companies in cases of harassment, dissemination of intimate content or online attacks.
The official stressed that the digital space has become a central part of daily life and that the data shows the magnitude of the problem in Mexico.
“According to a 2024 survey by INEGI (National Institute of Statistics and Geography), 83.7% of Mexicans have used the internet on any device. This is approximately 90.3 million people,” he explained.
According to that survey, 18 million people have experienced some form of cyberbullying, of which 10 million are women and 8 million are men. However, Hernández emphasized that the violence manifests itself differently depending on gender.
“In the case of women, they report experiencing sexual advances and propositions, receiving sexual content, or identity theft (…) the publication or sending of personal information, photos or videos, and the publication or sale of images or videos of sexual content,” she said.
She added that women report more severe emotional impacts such as anger, fear, insecurity, stress, frustration, and nervousness “because of the type of violence experienced in the digital space,” she stated.
The agreement includes nine prevention actions and eight intervention actions, including educational campaigns on social media, greater visibility of reporting tools, cooperation with authorities, and the creation of a guide for users to know how to report violent content.
Hernández recalled that Mexico has been a pioneer in this area with the Olimpia Law, which criminalizes the dissemination of intimate content without consent.
Cultural change
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum stated that the agreement is part of a broader strategy to combat violence against women in all areas, while also highlighting the importance of transforming cultural practices that normalize online harassment.
“Cultural change is fundamental, that is, the non-normalization of violence, discrimination, exclusion, and unfortunately, in the digital space, these forms of violence are beginning to be normalized in some areas,” he stated.
Sheinbaum indicated that the social network X (formerly Twitter) was invited to participate in the dialogue, but did not attend the meetings.
“They argued that they don’t have an office in Mexico and therefore didn’t attend any of the meetings. And it’s one of the networks where we see this hatred and violence most expressed,” he said.
Finally, he stressed that the agreement does not seek to censor content, but to improve reporting mechanisms and protection for victims.
