Up to 3,096 internet domains with child sexual abuse materials were blocked in 2024 amid Globe’s #MakeItSafePH campaign. Young people, including children and teenagers, may look for pictures or videos of their peers doing sexual things because they are curious, or want to know more about sex. Many youth who look for this content do not realize that it is illegal for them to look at it, even if they are a minor themselves. Where multiple children were seen in the images and videos, we saw that Category C images accounted for nearly half.
‘Sucked into’ appearing in videos
Planning ahead for unexpected situations or things that make you feel unsafe can be helpful in minimizing risk. Safety planning – which may include keeping a schedule, having a support person to call, or finding new ways to connect with friends and peers – can be especially helpful now when so many of our regular support networks have changed or fallen away. Even if you’re not ready to share all of what’s going on for you, you can still talk about your feelings and any struggles you’re having more generally as a way to get support. And, another is to minimize your interactions with youth online and offline – and thinking about how you can put this into practice for yourself if you haven’t already. It’s normal to feel like this isn’t something you can share with other people, or to worry you may be judged, shamed or even punished. And, it also goes over some ways to start thinking about whether there is anyone in your life you’d like to disclose your feelings to.
There are specialized therapists who work with adults who are having sexual feelings towards children, or who have other questions or concerns about their sexual feelings, thoughts and/or behaviors. Missing children are increasingly being linked to OnlyFans videos, says the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), known as a global clearing house for reports of child sexual exploitation. While it is illegal to post or share explicit images of someone under the age of 18, Mr Bailey says the police are extremely reluctant to criminalise children for such offences. He says he is more concerned about the risks children are exposing themselves to by appearing on the site. Our Think Before You Share campaign aims to help child porn young people understand the harm of sharing explicit images and videos of themselves, and others, and encourage parents and educators to start timely conversations with children and young people. Speaking to eNCA following the arrest of a Midrand couple accused of possessing and distributing at least 10 million child sexual abuse videos and images, Ephraim Tlhako from the Film and Publication Board said there is renewed concern about the crime.
“At the most serious end”, children were using the language of violent pornography and it was affecting their behaviour, she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. In a statement in response to our investigation, the government was highly critical of OnlyFans. The website has “failed to properly protect children and this is completely unacceptable”, a spokesperson said.
Why language matters: why we should never use ‘child pornography’ and always say child sexual abuse material
Internet Hotline Center Japan, which patrols cyberspace on commission from the National Police Agency, said it received 1,706 reports last year on illegal public displays of child porn. Aichi, Gifu and Saitama prefectural police in June arrested three operators of the “AV Market” online video marketplace on suspicion of violating the anti-child porn law. The report brings together current research on the developmental appropriateness of children’s sexual behaviour online and the comparison and cross-over between children and young people displaying online and offline HSB. Last month, a former British Army officer who arranged for children to be sexually abused in the Philippines while he watched online was jailed. But the consequences of children sharing explicit images – especially when the content could be leaked – may continue to haunt them for a long time to come. The girl later revealed to staff that she had been posting “very sexualised, pornographic” images, says the school’s head of safeguarding, who also told us about a 12 year-old girl who said she had used the site to contact adult creators and asked to meet up.
International coordination of law enforcement
- In Washington, the US Department of Justice said separately the site operated “the largest child sexual exploitation market by volume of content” when it was taken down.
- ‘Self-generated’ material is something that has risen year on year and a trend we are constantly monitoring.
- In addition, many other non-touching behaviors, such as routinely “walking in” on children while they are dressing or using the bathroom, can be inappropriate and harmful even though they may not be illegal.
Viewing, producing and/or distributing photographs and videos of sexual content including children is a type of child sexual abuse. This material is called child sexual abuse material (CSAM), once referred to as child pornography. It is illegal to create this material or share it with anyone, including young people.
This is, of course, particularly the case for the age group we are looking closer at in this study. 3-6-year-old children are sexually naive and would not normally be aware of the possibility of this type of sexual behaviour without someone else telling them or showing them what to do. They are easily manipulated and are therefore an easy target for predators who are looking to exploit them. “Dark web child sex offenders…cannot hide from law enforcement,” the UK’s National Crime Agency investigations lead, Nikki Holland, said. A young person may be asked to send photos or videos of themselves to a ‘friend’ that they might have met online. These photos and videos may then be sent to others and/or used to exploit that child.
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