Through children's eyes

Highlights

Across 21 countries, an estimated 20 million children aged 12 to 17 – about 1 in 5 of the internet-using children in these countries – were
sexually exploited or abused through digital technologies in a single year. They were targeted on digital platforms they used every day, sometimes by someone they already knew, and sometimes by someone they first met online. Many of these children did not seek help: less than 1 per cent of cases were reported to the police, a social worker or a helpline, and more than 4 in 10 cases were disclosed to no one at all. 

Children subjected to these forms of abuse were four times more likely to have suicidal thoughts and behaviours, four times more likely
to self-harm and reported anxiety levels around 11 percentage points higher than their peers. The associations are deeply concerning, and
these profound impacts can extend well beyond the immediate incident, affecting children’s schooling, relationships and everyday lives.
 

This report deals with ‘technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation and abuse’ which covers the ways digital tools and platforms are used to expose, solicit, coerce, extort, or share sexual content involving children, or to amplify and enable the sexual abuse and exploitation of children in both online and in-person settings. This is not a marginal risk; it runs through mainstream, everyday platforms.