One in Five Children Face Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation

About 20 million internet-using children aged 12 to 17 across 21 countries experienced sexual abuse or exploitation on digital platforms over the course of one year, according to a report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

The study covered countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe. About 15 million children were exposed to unwanted sexual content, nine million were pressured into sexual conversations or sharing sexual images, and four million had sexual images shared without their consent.

Nearly 60% of reported abuse occurred on social media platforms, particularly Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok. Another 14% took place in online games.

More than half of the cases involved someone the child already knew, while 38% of children first encountered the perpetrator online. Fewer than 1% of cases were reported to the police, a social worker or a helpline.

Across nine countries where data was collected, an estimated 1.1 million children reported having AI-generated sexual images or videos created depicting them. Children who experienced tech-facilitated sexual exploitation were about four times more likely to report suicidal thoughts or self-harm.

UNICEF called on governments and technology companies to strengthen protections, update laws and improve reporting mechanisms.

(Reuters, bak)