UN anti-crime chief calls for action to combat online abuse of children

Online child abuse is growing rapidly as more people gain access to the Internet, a top United Nations official warned today, calling for concerted global action to combat one of the most common forms of cybercrime.

“Serious offences are being committed – often right under a parent’s nose,” Yury Fedotov, the Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), said in his address to the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, which opened its 20th session in Vienna.

“The web literally opens a portal into your home and your children may be letting criminals in,” he stated.

Protecting children from online predators is among the issues to be taken up by the weeklong meeting of the Commission, which is focusing on progress in global efforts to address transnational organized crime, including emerging issues such as cybercrime.

“As more people gain access to the Internet, criminals have ever greater opportunities to entrap new victims, including children,” said Mr. Fedotov. “Online child abuse is expanding rapidly, but most existing laws were not enacted with the Internet in mind.”

Young people are particularly vulnerable in an online environment, according to UNODC. Engaging with criminals may lead to grooming, the disturbing practice of adults befriending minors in chat rooms or game sites with the express purpose of committing sexual abuse.

Since cybercrime defies national borders or jurisdictions, criminal justice systems working in isolation are often no match for powerful networks, the agency adds.

“Online child abuse constitutes a grave international crime and demands concerted collaboration: that means developing cyberethics, cybersafety and cybersecurity,” Mr. Fedotov stressed.

Noting a lack of reliable data on the issue, he encouraged all countries to strengthen their efforts to collect and share information to have an accurate picture of the scope and nature of the problem.

“Knowledge is essential for evidence-based policy and we must fill the information gap,” he said, while also stressing the need for a partnership between the public and the private sectors.

“Crime prevention and victim protection cannot be achieved by Governments or criminal justice systems alone; we need internet service providers, civil society, the media, educational institutions and the public on board.”

The Commission is the central UN body providing policy guidance on crime prevention and criminal justice.