Role of Technology in Preventing Online Child Exploitation

Role of Technology in Preventing Online Child Exploitation 

The act of sharing or threatening to share sexual images or personal information online of children through a means of technology as a means of coercion is known as online child exploitation. The aim behind this extortion is to cause distress to them or even to gain financial benefits by blackmailing them. One of the most common channels through which this is done is social media or other interactive online channels. 

Social media, gaming platforms and other online interactive sites are one of the most common reasons why there is a steady rise in these crimes as seen in today’s world. Children of all age groups have a digital presence of some sort, which is why governments of Nations need to find a way to prevent these crimes from happening by regulation; for example under the POCSO Act the Delhi High Court has appointed a committee to monitor and make sure everyone follows the guidelines laid down. The Delhi High Court also held a workshop called ‘Cyber Awareness Workshop On Online Child Sexual Abuse’ on their premises on 25th May 2023, which was brought by both the the High Court and the Delhi Police. The workshop showed various cyber awareness videos to the children and educated them on how to have a safe digital presence. 

There are various kinds of technology to help fight against online child sexual abuse such as NetClean’s technologies  which reacts when it detects the digital fingerprint of an image or video that law enforcement has classified as child sexual abuse material. Another one of their technologies enables internet service providers (ISP’s) to block any part 

of an URL containing known child sexual abuse material, hence limiting the spread of child sexual abuse material and stopping the cycle of re-victimization. Another tool known as Aviator can help detect online sexual exploitation of children. Reports of CSAM are labor-intensive to process. AviaTor, which stands for Augmented Visual Intelligence and Targeted Online Research, is an efficient tool that helps law enforcement prioritize all aspects of NCMEC reports so that they can focus on identifying perpetrators and saving victims.

Parents can also make their children aware about the risks associated with being on social media platforms. They can educate and guide their children on being safe digitally by telling them not to share any personal information on the internet, advising them to use privacy settings, reviewing the apps they are on, etc. Using terms like ‘stranger danger’ with younger kids to help them better understand the risks and repercussions.

By implementing these techniques and spearheading more awareness there is a way to overcome these heinous crimes and exist in a safer online world. There are rigorous laws being put into force all over the world to combat these crimes and reduce the risks. This is extremely important as in today’s world everybody has gone digital, for example during COVID-19, when from children to adults were using online platforms for schooling and work. By ensuring that technology is safe the instances of these crimes can be reduced significantly which in turn can make the world a safer place.

References : 

• Lawyers Update, volume XXIX, Part 6, June 2023
• https://www.end-violence.org/members/netclean
• https://respect.international/technology-against-child-sexual-abuse-content/#:~:text=Another%20technology%20enables%20internet%20service,the%20cycle%20of%20re%2Dvictimization

Author : KAHINI KRISHNAN, student at SVKM’S NMIMS SCHOOL OF LAW, NAVI MUMBAI