Social media abuse drives girls off Facebook, Instagram, Twitter

Girls are being silenced by a toxic level of harassment, said Plan International's chief executive, Anne-Birgitte Albrectsen. Filepic

Online abuse is driving girls to quit social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, with nearly 60% experiencing harassment, a global study showed on Sunday.

One in five girls and young women has abandoned or cut down on using a social media platform after being targeted, with some saying harassment started when they were as young as eight, the survey by girls' rights group Plan International showed.