A YOUNG woman from Colchester has been awarded a top accolade for her commitment to helping victims of cybercrime.

Charlotte Hooper, 24, has been recognised with the one of the highest accolades a young person can achieve – The Diana Award.

Established in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, the award is given out by the charity of the same name and has the support of both her sons, The Prince of Wales and The Duke of Sussex.

Charlotte has been working to support victims of cybercrime through UK charity The Cyber Helpline.

She said: “I was a beautician at Debenhams and decided I wanted to get into policing.

“I studied that at uni, went to join the police, passed everything, but when it got to the medical stage, I had hypermobility so I couldn’t join.

“So, I was looking for something else to do and cybercrime always stood out.”

Joining The Cyber Helpline when it was still in its infancy as a volunteer, Charlotte has since been a part of its growth.

She began running it voluntarily within a couple of years before becoming the first employee, now running the charity alongside the chief executive.

The Cyber Helpline provides supports for individuals who are victims of cybercrime and now helps thousands every month.

The charity has a chatbot as well as volunteers who help victims through the issues.

Charlotte added: “It is understandable people are not sure about cybercrime, I see some saying they would ‘never fall for scams’ but you could.

“It is so many things too, my specialism is cyberstalking where the impact is massive, just because something is happening online doesn’t mean it is less violent or impactful.

Charlotte was nominated for the Diana Award by her chief executive and has said she was “super excited” to be recognised.

She said: “The Diana Award is all about her memory, and the belief young people have the power to change the world.

“Lots of our volunteers are young people at uni and they have immense knowledge, sharing that is so important.

“For me personally, it is awesome, and I was super excited.

“In an ideal world, I wouldn’t get anything as cybercrime isn’t an issue, but whilst is does exist it is nice to be recognised.”