THE parents of Co Tyrone teenager Ronan Hughes last night said they have been given an assurance that Facebook will immediately remove pages once contacted by police with a complaint of cyber bullying.
It comes after their 17-year-old son took his own life after a gang blackmailed him over intimate images.
Gerard and Teresa Hughes from Clonoe, near Coalisland said a Nigerian gang demanded more than £3,000 from their son and threatened to send the images to his online friends.
Earlier this week, the Hughes' family criticised the police "inaction" after they had initially reported the matter to the PSNI just days before Ronan's tragic death.
It emerged last night that the PSNI handling of the case has been referred to the Police Ombudsman for investigation.
It comes after the family, accompanied by Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill and Francie Molloy, yesterday met with police to ask for an update on the investigation.
Ms O'Neill said the family were told that the PSNI have now issued guidance to all its officers on how to deal with such cases.
She said there were "lessons to be learned" from how the case had been handled.
"Coming from such a tragic event there now appears be a step change in how such cases will be dealt with," she said.
"For instance Facebook previously waited three to four days following a complaint from a police service to remove a page.
"The Hughes family were given reassurances that any such pages will now be removed immediately following such a complaint.
"Further to this the family were informed that the PSNI have now issued guidance to all its officers as to how to deal with such cases and will be increasing training in this field.
"It is clear that this is a growing area for crime and needs to be focused on."
Ms O'Neill said the Policing Board had asked for details and the PSNI had also referred the case to the Police Ombudsman.
Detective Chief Superintendent Brian Hanna said: "Enquiries are continuing into what will be a complex and protracted investigation.
"In recent days, there has been a great deal of conversation about the steps young people, and indeed everyone, should take to stay safe online and I would once again urge anyone who has experienced anything of a similar nature or has received any inappropriate images or links to contact police or tell a trusted adult.
“We all deserve to be able to use the internet to learn, explore and connect with each other. But all of us need to be aware of the risks involved in doing so, especially on social media."
Any child affected by these issues can contact Childline on 0800 1111 or Lifeline on 0808 808 8000
