Grooming, Child Abuse, & Child Sexual Exploitation

Open Access: Yes.

Abstract

This study explores a sample of 1,546 anonymous individuals who voluntarily responded to our “Help us to help you” survey when searching for child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on the dark web. Nearly half (42%) of the respondents reported that they had sought direct contact with children through online platforms after viewing CSAM, and 58% reported feeling afraid that viewing CSAM might lead to sexual acts with a child or adult. This study analyses whether certain risk factors are linked to a higher likelihood of contacting children after viewing CSAM. It finds that certain factors are associated with a self-reported likelihood of having contacted children online after viewing CSAM, including more frequent use of CSAM, older age of first exposure to CSAM, viewing CSAM depicting toddlers and infants, having thoughts of self-expressing prior to viewing CSAM, and being in contact with other CSAM users.

Relevance

A majority of survey respondents reported that they were under the age of 18 when they were first exposed to CSAM (65%). Many were under 13 (32%).

Greater frequency of using child pornography, and the young the age of the children depicted, is associated with a greater likelihood of contacting  children for abuse.

Users of child pornography who “felt depressed or anxious, or guilt and  shame, are more likely to fear that their use of CSAM will lead them to  commit sexual acts with a child or adult.”

“Respondents who reported that they had, at least occasionally, been in contact with other users were indeed at a higher risk of reporting having sought contact with children.”

“The creation, use, and distribution of CSAM is an urgent public health and human rights crisis. Not only do individuals using CSAM harm children depicted in the material; they are also at risk of  directly contacting children and committing further sexual violence against them online and offline. Nearly half (42%) of respondents to the ”Help us to help you” survey reported that they had  sought direct contact with children through online platforms after viewing CSAM, and 23% said they seek contact with children at least monthly. Additionally, 58% reported feeling afraid that  viewing CSAM might lead to sexual acts with a child or adult; 37% felt that way monthly, weekly, or daily.”

Citation

Insoll, T., Ovaska, A. K., Nurmi, J., Aaltonen, M., & Vaaranen-Valkonen, N. (2022). Risk Factors for Child Sexual Abuse Material Users Contacting Children Online: Results of an Anonymous Multilingual Survey on the Dark Web. Journal of Online Trust and Safety, 1(2). https://doi.org/10.54501/jots.v1i2.29