PRESS RELEASE: 18 November 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ECPAT joins Civil Society and Child Rights Organisations in an Open Letter to the European Union — “We must make the Internet a Safe Place for Children”
BANGKOK—Every single day, children’s rights to protection from sexual abuse and exploitation online are violated. An overwhelming 85 million images and videos were reported by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) globally in 2021 – with Europe hosting over 62% of this material according to the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF).
Advances in technology and law enforcement tools and procedures, along with a well-established child protection ecosystem, could provide the tools we need to detect, report, and remove child sexual abuse from the internet. We are not helpless.
“Together, we have the opportunity to strengthen the European Commission proposal to Prevent and Combat Child Sexual Abuse online”
Amy Crocker, Head of Child Protection and Technology
On the European Day on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, ECPAT calls on European policy-makers to ensure children’s right to be safe online is legally protected and that the voluntary detection, report, and removal of child sexual abuse material online remain possible. Citizens across the EU have expressed widespread support for the EU to introduce long-term legislation that will keep children safe online — learn more.
ECPAT continues to work in close partnership with organisations across the EU and globally to advocate that child safety online remains a priority in the EU and beyond. Only together, we can find solutions that will help us build a world where children can be safe online.
Read the Open Letter to the European Union.
Learn more about ECPAT recommendations on the European Commission’s proposal of 11 May 2022.
For more information, please contact Isaline Wittorski at isalinew@ecpat.org
For media inquiries please contact communications@ecpat.org