New survey of UK, French and German social media users shows scale of online abuse

New survey of UK, French and German social media users shows scale of online abuse

More than half of survey respondents have experienced some form of online abuse, with younger survey respondents experiencing the most abuse
Research reveals users are withdrawing from social media and self-censoring to protect themselves
Abuse is having a profound impact with many survey respondents considering leaving social media altogether

Data insights from a new survey of 4,138 social media users in France, Germany and the UK show that more than half of respondents are facing online abuse and of those, most (82%) are self-censoring or withdrawing from social media. A reality for many human rights defenders on the frontline of disinformation and online hate, the research found ordinary social media users are also subject to online attack.

The survey conducted by RIWI, together with The Syria Campaign and Data4change in November 2024, found that 30% of the social media users surveyed are considering leaving social media platforms. Facebook stood out as the platform most respondents are considering leaving at 35%. But those aged 18-24 years are by far the most likely to be considering withdrawing from social media: 48% say they’re thinking of leaving the platforms they currently use, compared to just 16% of those aged 65 and over.

Survey respondents feel safest sharing their opinions on private messaging apps, while fear of repercussions when expressing support for those affected by conflict was a universal concern among our respondents: 99.8% of respondents selected at least one reason for hesitating to express support on social media.

The Silencing Effect report out today also reveals the real-life impact of toxic online behaviour on human rights defenders from Palestine, Ukraine and Syria. Speaking to 15 activists, the report shows how activists and ordinary social media users – two groups of people using social media in very different contexts and often for different purposes, face many of the same challenges and are choosing to self censor in many of the same ways.

Julia Tymoshenko, a social media blogger and advocate from Ukraine, as part of the research, said:

“It has been almost three years of the war. On one hand, I feel strong emotions, but they are more bottled inside me. I used to write about it and now I don’t have the energy to do that because I know how emotionally difficult it is. I feel numb and I don’t feel as motivated to create content.”

Razan Rashidi, Executive Director of The Syria Campaign said:

“The scale of online abuse for ordinary people and human rights defenders is so high that our voices as citizens and communities are being silenced. In the face of inaction from large social media platforms, people are forced to withdraw and fall silent as a way to protect themselves from attack. Our research shows that those who express opinions or share news online are more likely to face abuse so for many, it is simply safer to stay quiet. This is dangerous for freedom of expression, for global connections and democracy.

“It matters now more than ever for us to engage with each other, act in solidarity and protect the truth. In Syria, for example, there is a crucial moment for Syrians to carve out a new future and it’s vital that civic space is protected for the preservation of history, transitional justice and accountability for war crimes.

“We are calling on EU and UK policymakers to ensure social media platforms respond to user complaints and act to protect them from online harms; introduce specific protections for human rights defenders and improve digital literacy and education for all.”

Essam Hajjaj is a Palestinian poet, writer and human rights defender in Gaza. His blog Witness from Gaza documents his life under attack. As part of the research he said: “During the aggression, there were accounts commenting on our posts, threatening us. When we posted updates about what was happening or expressed opposition to the occupation, they’d say things like, ‘You will be killed’. These threats are constant…I want people to know the truth. We want to build a future in our own place, to feel safe, and to create something meaningful.”

Note to editors

Survey respondents voluntarily took part in the anonymous, quantitative web survey, which was available in French, German, Arabic and English, between 7 and 22 November 2024.
Online abuse, in this report, covers receiving direct threat of physical or sexual violence, abusive messages, violent or graphic content, attacks based on your religion, ethnicity, nationality, race, colour, ancestry, sexuality or gender; offline threats related to your online activity, and doxing (intentional online exposure of an individual’s identity, personal details or sensitive information).