While many found workloads – or even jobs themselves – dwindled during the pandemic, the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) faced the opposite challenge. As the nation stayed at home and almost all activity was confined to the internet, the body responsible for identifying and removing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online was, sadly, dealing with a rapid increase in reports.
In September 2020, the IWF saw record numbers of public reports of CSAM – 45% up on the previous September – which they put down to the increasing amount of time people were spending on the internet. There was also another worrying trend: in the first six months of 2020, the IWF noticed a disturbing rise in the amount of children being groomed into filming their own abuse. Once again, an increased amount of time spent at home, with interactions only available via digital devices, is a likely cause.
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In September 2020, the IWF saw record numbers of public reports of CSAM – 45% up on the previous September – which they put down to the increasing amount of time people were spending on the internet. There was also another worrying trend: in the first six months of 2020, the IWF noticed a disturbing rise in the amount of children being groomed into filming their own abuse. Once again, an increased amount of time spent at home, with interactions only available via digital devices, is a likely cause.
read more (nominet)
