According to a new report by Europol, EU law enforcement authorities are faced with a huge amount of online material containing videos child sexual abuse (CSAM).
The Europol report broadly describes various cyber threats . However, one section shows that there has been a significant increase in online child sexual abuse content, as well as an increase in its distribution during the months of COVID-19. lockdown
EU authorities have managed to stop many attempts to access sites with such content during the lockdown. However, the problem is so widespread that agencies no longer have enough resources to investigate every report of this material .
Investigators in EU Member States are often asked to choose which case to work on, as it is difficult to block all inappropriate content.
The rise in online child sexual abuse content may be due to criminals changing their modus operandi. In the past, the people who uploaded such content to the dark web were not the same people who sexually abused children . But now, online communities require the perpetrators themselves to record the criminal act and post it online .
Most worryingly, however, is that this content is being uploaded online even by children who, in recent months, have been spending more time online due to the lockdown.
Livestreaming sexual abuse continued to grow and become even more popular during the COVID-19, where activities and travel were limited. During the quarantine, actual sexual abuse (physical) was difficult. That's why many criminals turned to the internet.
According to Infosecurity Magazine, the Philippines is the country that leads the way in livestreaming such content, although authorities have also found similar services in Romania.
