Teenagers being targeted by dangerous elements online, says judge

Eoin Reynolds

Teenagers are the object of manipulative, false and malicious propaganda spread online by terrorists and other dangerous elements, a High Court judge has warned.

Mr Justice Paul McDermott said that those who say the internet should remain lightly regulated ignore the damage caused to children and the resulting suffering inflicted on others.

He added: "At times, one could be forgiven for thinking that there is a reluctance by some to accept an appropriate level of responsibility or accountability for what they facilitate.

"It is a very real and important child care, safety and protection issue with enormous societal consequences if it is not addressed effectively."

Mr Justice McDermott made his comments during a sentencing hearing for a teenager who was exposed to radical Islamist ideology online, which inspired him to attempt to murder a member of the Irish Defence Forces.

The teen, who cannot be named due to his age, lay in wait at the Renmore Barracks in Galway, where he attacked and repeatedly stabbed army chaplain Father Paul Murphy (52) on August 15, 2024.

Mr Justice McDermott said the circumstances of the attack are as "terrifying as they are extraordinary".

He added: "In the modern world, vulnerable and highly impressionable and otherwise intelligent teenagers can be the object of dangerous, manipulative, false and malicious propaganda by terrorists or those holding terrorist sympathies or other dangerous elements in society through the internet."

In other cases, he said he has seen extreme physical and sexual violence carried out by young people against a background of access to unsuitable and extreme subject matter, including violence and pornography.

"So-called influencers," the judge said, are propagating extreme political, religious or discriminatory views to children.

Due to their immaturity, the judge said children can be drawn to unsuitable parts of the internet and become "relatively easy prey for fanatical propagandists".

He added: "This is made possible because these malign influencers or groups have very open and virtually uncontrolled capacity to establish and maintain such platforms. Children have open access to their sites and they, in turn, gain access to our children to spread their poison."