Desperate mum Ellen Roome pleads to social media companies ‘I want to know why my precious baby is no longer here’ amid fight for access to his social media data, following her son's tragic death.
Cheltenham mum Ellen Roome tragically found her 14-year-old son, Jools Sweeney, unconscious at home in April 2022. She believes Jools could have fallen victim to an online challenge that went wrong, but can't prove this without appropriate data access. The mum has been unable to gain the information she needs without a court order, and campaigns for a change in the law to allow all parents access to their children's social media data.
Ms Roome reports being denied access to Jool's TikTok and Snapchat data, and is meeting with TikTok representatives shortly, to review her case. Snapchat has issued a statement of condolence, and Ms Roome states she's received no response from Instagram in relation to her requests for information.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast about the upcoming meeting with TikTok, Ms Roome says "I've asked them for his data and they haven't done that, so I'm not sure why they want to speak to me as opposed to just giving me the data I want. But it's quite interesting to see what they have to say."
Asked to explain the data denial further, she adds "Without a court order I was told I couldn't get his data. So they have said they would have a meeting with me, but is that to give me the data? I don't understand why we need a meeting as opposed to handing over the data."
"I've asked them for his data and they haven't done that, so I'm not sure why they want to speak to me as opposed to just giving me the data I want."
As she fights for answers about her son's death, Ms Roome puts time into getting "Jools' Law" implemented, which would allow all parents access to their child's social media accounts, whether they're alive or they pass away. Jools' family can only surmise that he died as a result of viewing harmful content on social media without full access to content he viewed.
An inquest suggests it was unlikely Jools took his own life, but again remained inconclusive without the data evidence. Speaking to the BBC, Ms Roome says "I want to know why my precious baby is no longer here. I just want to know if he was talking to somebody who was perhaps not appropriate or whether there was some online challenge. Jools was into every single challenge possible."
The BBC continues to report TikTok will not be commenting publicly on the situation until after meeting with Jools' family. However, a spokesperson from Snapchat said: "Our hearts go out to Ms Roome and her family for the loss of Jools.
We have extra protections for under 18s and offer parental tools so parents can see who their teens are communicating with and report any concerns." They suggest they'll hand over data "once we have followed legal steps to verify their identification".
Jools' family set up a petition to allow families access` to their child's social media data. It's currently closed in the run up to the election, ending with 126,033 signatures. It can be viewed here.
If you're wondering how to keep kids safe online, our tips will be useful in the wake of undress AI apps and internet sextortion on the rise.
