Online Sexual Abuse of Children in Europe
On average, 1 in 5 children is exposed to sexual violence and abuse. Meanwhile, every third image or video depicting sexual abuse of children that comes to the attention of authorities involves a child under the age of 10. Furthermore, over 60 percent of all child sexual abuse material stored worldwide is located within the EU. This number has further increased during the pandemic.
The results of the European Commission’s July 2023 survey also indicate that the EU population strongly supports the prevention of online sexual harassment of children.
According to these results, the vast majority of Europeans:
- Believe that children are increasingly at risk online (92%);
- Think that the sexual harassment of children on the internet is a very/widespread problem in their country (73%);
- Support the use of tools by service providers to automatically detect already known images and videos (89%), new images and videos (85%), and harassment (84%), even if these tools may infringe on users’ privacy;
- Approve of the Commission’s legislative proposal to prevent and combat the sexual harassment of children (78%).
The sexual harassment of children, both online and offline, has numerous long-term consequences on the lives of children and adults. Victims of online sexual harassment are not only abused in the physical world. Their suffering continues every time the material depicting their abuse spreads further online and is shared or viewed by new people. Every child depicted in such material must live with the knowledge that the recording of their sexual abuse may circulate on the internet for the rest of their life.
If no action is taken to remove these images and videos, the children remain at the mercy of the perpetrators.
A New Child Protection Legislative Proposal for Children’s Online Safety
We now have a unique opportunity to place Europe at the forefront of children’s online safety globally. A new EU legislation (CSA) is being prepared, which can ensure the harmonized protection of children across the 27 EU member states and set an example for the rest of the world. The new EU regulation will help in identifying and removing images and videos of sexual abuse of children from the internet, supporting victims, and holding perpetrators accountable.
The right to privacy for users and the right of children to be protected from violence are not mutually exclusive; they must coexist. The proposal does not impose a general monitoring obligation but instead focuses on targeted monitoring in specific cases. Additionally, it includes numerous safeguards to respect all fundamental rights. The technologies long used to combat the sexual harassment of children are solely intended to detect child sexual abuse. They only recognize patterns indicating such abuse.
However, even the most progressive legislation alone will not be enough. The commitment of member states and the joint efforts of authorities and civil society working in this field are also necessary.
This is why last year ECPAT Hungary-Hintalovon Foundation undertook the task of organizing training for journalists on the subject of sexual violence against children. This year, we are holding a training session in Brussels on the digital aspects of the phenomenon (from sexual harassment to grooming and human trafficking involving children). In this one-day, interactive training, you can share your experiences, expand your knowledge, and collaborate with other international media professionals. Also it is a unique opportunity to obtain information about the safeguarding of industrial stakeholders.
More details about the Brussels’ training
- More information about EU CSAM regulation: https://www.childsafetyineurope.com/
About ECPAT International
ECPAT International is a unified front of 126 civil society organizations from over 100 nations, all passionately committed to a shared vision of eliminating the sexual exploitation of children. Leveraging more than three decades of experience in multi-stakeholder engagement and partnership management, their extensive network operates at national, regional, and global levels. They tirelessly advance because they believe that every child deserves a world free from sexual exploitation. In March 2020, the Hintalovon Child Rights Foundation became a full member of ECPAT and now represents the organization in Hungary.
