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FAQ:
Child Sexual Exploitation
What
is child sexual exploitation?
Child sexual exploitation includes the following:
- Possession, Manufacture, and Distribution of Child Pornography
- Enticement of Children for Sexual Acts
- Child Prostitution
- Child Sex Tourism
- Child Sexual Molestation
NCMEC’s CyberTipline takes reports about child sexual exploitation
as well as other crimes against children. Learn
more about these reporting categories and/or report
a suspected case of child sexual exploitation.
What
is online child sexual exploitation?
Online child sexual exploitation is the sexual exploitation of a child
that has an Internet component.
What
is child pornography?
Under federal law (18 U.S.C. §2256), child pornography1 is defined
as any visual depiction, including any photograph, film, video, picture,
or computer or computer-generated image or picture, whether made or produced
by electronic, mechanical, or other means, of sexually explicit conduct,
where
- the production of the visual depiction involves the use of a minor
engaging in sexually explicit conduct; or
- the visual depiction is a digital image, computer image, or computer-generated
image that is, or is indistinguishable from, that of a minor engaging
in sexually explicit conduct; or
- the visual depiction has been created, adapted, or modified to appear
that an identifiable minor is engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
Federal law (18 U.S.C. §1466A) also criminalizes knowingly producing,
distributing, receiving, or possessing with intent to distribute, a visual
depiction of any kind, including a drawing, cartoon, sculpture or painting,
that
- depicts a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct and is obscene,
or
- depicts an image that is, or appears to be, of a minor engaging in
graphic bestiality, sadistic or masochistic abuse, or sexual intercourse,
including genital-genital, oral-genital, anal-genital, or oral-anal,
whether between persons of the same or opposite sex and such depiction
lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.
Sexually explicit conduct is defined under federal law (18 U.S.C. §2256)
as actual or simulated sexual intercourse (including genital-genital,
oral-genital, anal-genital, or oral-anal, whether between persons of
the same or opposite sex), bestiality, masturbation, sadistic or masochistic
abuse, or lascivious exhibition of the genitals or pubic area of any
person.
If you are uncertain about whether the images or videos you have come across
meet the standards of the law, please do not hesitate to report them to www.cybertipline.com.
NCMEC will review the site, determine whether it is apparent child pornography,
and then forward it to the appropriate law-enforcement agency.
1As stated by Janis Wolak, Kimberly Mitchell, and David Finkelhor in Internet
Sex Crimes Against Minors: The Response of Law Enforcement (Alexandria,
Virginia: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, November
2003, page vii), “The term ‘child pornography,’ because
it implies simply conventional pornography with child subjects, is
an inappropriate term to describe the true nature and extent of sexually
exploitive images of child victims. Use of this term should not be
taken to imply that children ‘consented’ to the sexual
acts depicted in these photographs; however, it is the term most readily
recognized by the public, at this point in time, to describe this form
of child sexual exploitation. It is used in this [document] to refer
to illegal pictorial material involving children under the standards
developed by statute, case law, and law-enforcement-agency protocols.
It is hoped that a more accurate term will be recognized, understood,
and accepted for use in the near future.”
How
big of a problem is child sexual exploitation?
The sexual victimization of children is overwhelming in magnitude yet
largely unrecognized and underreported. Research indicates that 1
in 5 girls and 1 in 10 boys will be sexually victimized before
adulthood.
[D. Finkelhor. “Current Information
on the Scope and Nature of Child Sexual Abuse.” The Future of Children:
Sexual Abuse of Children, 1994, volume 4, page 37.]
To learn more about child sexual exploitation and prevention, read Preventing
the Sexual Exploitation of Children.
How
many children are sexually solicited and/or approached online?
According to the latest online victimization research,
- Approximately one in seven youth online (10 to
17 years-old) received a sexual solicitation or approach over the
Internet.
- Four percent (4%) received an aggressive sexual
solicitation — a solicitor who asked to meet them somewhere;
called them on the telephone; or sent them offline mail, money,
or gifts.
- Thirty-four percent (34%) had an unwanted exposure
to sexual material — pictures of naked people or people having
sex.
- Children revealed 27% of these episodes of unwanted
exposure to sexual material to a parent or guardian. Children
reported 42% of the distressing encounters – episodes
that made them feel very or extremely upset or afraid – to
a parent or guardian.
[David Finkelhor, Kimberly J. Mitchell, and
Janis Wolak. Online Victimization of Youth: Five Years Later.
Alexandria, Virginia: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children,
2006, pages 7-8, 33.]
For more information, download the report, Online Victimization of Youth: Five Years Later.
For prevention resources for kids, parents and teens, visit the
NetSmartz Workshop.
What
are some examples of online sexual solicitations reported to NCMEC?
The quotes below were taken from children in the 2006 report Online
Victimization of Youth: Five Years Later.
- Boy, 11, who was playing an online game with a 20-year-old-man: “He
asked me something personal, something about a man’s privates.”
- Girl,12: “I went into the chatroom, and they asked me if
I wanted to have cybersex. I was asking them what kind of music
they liked and stuff.”
- Girl, 14: “I was chatting on
the Internet and this guy just popped up in an instant message and
started talking really dirty to me and saying things that I had
never heard of before. He told me he was 20 years old and then he
said, ‘LOL’ (laugh out loud).
For more information, download the report, Online Victimization of Youth: Five Years Later.
What
should I do if my child is the victim of sexual exploitation?
If your child indicates that he or she may have been the victim of sexual
exploitation or abuse:
- Seek appropriate medical attention to be sure your child has not
been physically injured.
- Report the exploitation to your local law-enforcement agency.
- Inform child-protection, youth-services, child-abuse, or other appropriate
social- service organizations about the exploitation.
- Seek counseling or therapy for your child.
- Contact NCMEC at 1-800-THE-LOST® (1-800-843-5678) or visit
www.cybertipline.com
to find out what resources are available to you and to make a report.
What
is the CyberTipline®?
The Congressionally-mandated CyberTipline is a means for reporting crimes
against children including:
- possession, manufacture, and distribution of child pornography
- online enticement of children for sexual acts
- Child prostitution
- Sex Tourism Involving Children
- Extrafamilial Child Sexual Molestation
- Unsolicited Obscene Material Sent to a Child
- Misleading Domain Names
- Misleading Words or Digital Images on the Internet
Reports may be made 24-hours a day, 7 days a week online at www.cybertipline.com or
by calling 1-800-843-5678.
What
happens to my CyberTipline report after I submit it to NCMEC?
Every report is analyzed by staff members in NCMEC's Exploited Children
Division and is provided to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the
Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the U.S. Postal Inspection
Service, the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force agencies, the
U.S. Secret Service, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Child Exploitation
and Obscenity Section, and state and/or local law enforcement when such
jurisdiction can be determined. Each of the agencies can review the reports
and determine if further action is needed.
Does
NCMEC investigate my CyberTipline report?
NCMEC is not a law-enforcement agency and does not have the authority
to investigate and arrest perpetrators. However, each report is reviewed
by NCMEC analysts, who examine and evaluate the content, add related
information that would be useful to law enforcement, use publicly-available
search tools to determine the geographic location of the apparent criminal
act, and provide all information to the appropriate law enforcement agency
for investigation.
Will
I be contacted about the outcome of my report?
Reporting persons are not contacted regarding the final outcome of reports.
If a reporting person desires to be updated about the status of a report,
it is advised that law enforcement be contacted directly as NCMEC's Exploited
Children Division does not handle the reports beyond initial intake and
analysis.
Persons reporting unsolicited e-mail or child pornography will be contacted
only if additional information is needed or if requested in the report.
Persons reporting other incident types, such as extrafamilial child molestation,
are sometimes contacted to verify the information provided and explain
what the reporting person's next steps should be, especially in a situation
where there is potential or immediate risk to a child.
Thus, it is always a good idea to include your contact information in the
CyberTipline report. Please leave your name, your home and work telephone
numbers, the time you would like to be contacted, and an e-mail address.
What
is Child Victim Identification Program (CVIP)?
The Child Victim Identification Program (CVIP) is part of NCMEC’S
Exploited Children Division. CVIP analysts provide technical assistance
to law enforcement on cases involving child sexual exploitation.
CVIP analysts review child pornography images and videos submitted by law
enforcement to help prosecutors secure convictions for crimes involving
identified child victims and assist law enforcement in locating and rescuing
child victims who have not yet been identified.
Learn
More
How
do I help keep my children safer online?
Check out the safety tips for families, kids, and teens available at
NCMEC’s NetSmartz Workshop.
Are you an adult who has questions about how to keep kids safer
on the Internet? NetSmartz411 is
here to help!
Also check out our Ad Council campaigns, HDOP:
Help Delete Online Predators, Don’t
Believe the Type and Think
Before You Post, as well as our publication Keeping
Kids Safer on the Internet.
I
came across images that I think might be child pornography,
what should I do?
Report it to CyberTipline
(www.cybertipline.com).
What
should I do if I accidentally view, receive, or download child pornography?
Images of child pornography are illegal and may be needed for evidence;
it is imperative that you take the following steps:
- Do not mail these images to law enforcement.
- Call or visit the proper law-enforcement authority and ask how
they would like to handle this evidence.
- After speaking with the
proper law-enforcement authority, follow their instructions.
I
viewed a text advertisement for child pornography but I did not see images.
Should I report it?
A text advertisement describing child pornography is illegal. Follow
the same steps you would if you found child pornography on the Internet.
Report it to CyberTipline and
provide us with the URL, the offender's e-mail address if possible, and
the time and date that you found the images. The more information you
can provide, the more helpful the information is to law-enforcement authorities.
My
13-year-old son received an e-mail with an image of adult pornography,
is this illegal?
An incident such as this may be illegal. Please make a CyberTipline report
and save the e-mail in which the image was attached. Please include the
full expanded "Header" information in your CyberTipline report.
Where
do I report seeing adult pornography sites?
Report adult obscenity that does not include children to www.obscenitycrimes.org.
If, however, you suspect that there are illegal images of children on
the site, report it to CyberTipline.
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