Online tool receives more than 7,000 reports of sexually explicit content of minors in 6 months

A recent breakthrough aimed toward removing sexually explicit content of minors online has received more than 7,000 reports in less than six months as the crime targets more and more youth.

"Take It Down," five months in operation, aims to help minors remove their sexually explicit images from the internet as more and more youngsters face sextortion, suicide and other fallout from shared images.

John Shehan, senior vice president at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, said the new platform was influenced by United Kingdom-based Stop Non-Consensual Intimate Image Abuse.

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Meta, the parent company for Facebook and Instagram, had partnered with the British organization, Shehan said, leading them to reach out to the center in hopes of launching a similar program in the U.S.

"They approached us and wanted to know if NCMEC would be willing to offer a service for individuals under the age of 18 that are anywhere in the world that may be in possession of new intimate imagery, wanting to report on someone else's behalf," Shehan said.

Shehan said Meta also provided the financial resources to create the service.

"We began building this in early 2022," Shehan said. "And we launched it in December."

Social media companies work with law enforcement

Shehan said a law that requires them, if they become aware of child sexual abuse material, to file a report to the cyber tip line. It's the same law that requires them to provide the information to law enforcement, he added.

He said they work closely with local, state and federal law enforcement in the U.S.

"There are 150 countries and territories ... that also accept cybercrime reports because as you can imagine, many of the big providers ... Google, Dropbox, Meta ... Whoever it may be, there are people all around the world using these platforms," Shehan said.

Taking it down: Is sexually explicit material of your child online? This tool can help remove it

Initiative also covers self-produced imagery

Shehan said there's a growing number of cases where minors are self-producing sexually explicit imagery.

"Maybe it's for a boyfriend or a girlfriend," Shehan said. "Maybe they've been groomed online to produce that material as well. They take that image, that momentary lapse of judgment, whatever it may be, and once it gets out there, they lose control."

Shehan expressed it's difficult to get that imagery back. He added using the new platform doesn't capture any personally identifiable information.

"They answer a few simple questions on the website, and they actually have the ability to create a digital fingerprint, a hash value, or digital fingerprint, of that image or video that's on their phone," Shehan said. The website is at https://takeitdown.ncmec.org .

The image or video never leaves the creator's device, Shehan said.

"Once the information is reported into the cyber tip line, we in turn make it available to companies that are participating in this effort with us," Shehan said.

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Shehan said social platforms such as TikTok, Facebook and Instagram are among those taking those digital fingerprints.

Through them, Shehan said those platforms will remove the content and report it to the cyber tip line.

"Once we get that cyber tip line report, we in turn will make that available to law enforcement for their own independent review and investigation," Shehan said.

Since "Take It Down" launched in December 2022, he said they've had more than 7,000 incidents reported, comprising more than 14,000 hash values from that service alone.

"We're already aware of at least three cases where minors used that service and the companies were able to proactively identify that content on their platforms and remove it," Shehan said.

Laura Palumbo, spokesperson for the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, said intimate image sharing is "such a huge issue."

"Unfortunately, we have heard too many stories of teens who have had their image shared in nonconsensual ways that has had devastating impacts on their life," Palumbo said. "... teens who have died from suicide after images were shared publicly without their consent."

She said data indicates online sexual abuse is highly prevalent across age groups.

"Not only is it highly prevalent, but there has been a lack of resources and options for people who have had these experiences," Palumbo said. "Many victims of online sexual abuse are not sure who to ask for help."

Federal crimes involving child pornography could lead to fines and between 15 years and 30 years in prison, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Palumbo said local law enforcement doesn't always have the resources to be able to investigate.

"It's really important to consider the specific impact on children and young people," she said. "We as a society have just really been starting to take it more seriously."

Adults who have photos as minors can also remove them

Meta is among those tapping into the service.

"Adults who are also concerned about images that were taken of them when they were a minor can also use that platform," said Erin McPike, spokesperson for Meta.

McPike said Meta provided support and guidance, as well as financial resources, to help build "Take It Down."

"So what would happen is a young person or a trusted adult on behalf of that young person can submit a case or a hash, which is a unique digital fingerprint of that image," she explained.

Then, she said, companies such as Meta can use those hashes or digital fingerprints to see if there are videos or images that match that image.

Local authorities react

The Collier County Sheriff's Office, in Southwest Florida, is among state and national law enforcement agencies battling child sexual abuse "pandemic."

"The proliferation of child sexual abuse material, facilitated by an increase in technology and applications that allow people to connect and share files around the world, is a pandemic," Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk wrote in a statement. "The number of children who are exploited online every year continues to grow exponentially. Thankfully, those who fight against this also continue to develop new ways to combat the problem."

Rambosk said the sheriff's office works with the NCMEC regularly.

"It will also allow law enforcement to receive a report as to the suspects who were sharing the file, so that we can bring them to justice," he said.

Andrea Aprea, spokesperson for the FBI in Tampa, said in a statement that federal agents remain vigilant in their effort to protect minors.

"Of late, we are seeing a significant increase in financial sextortion," she wrote. "Financial sextortion is a criminal act that involves an offender coercing a minor to create and send sexually explicit images or videos."

Aprea said offenders threaten to release that compromising material unless the victim sends money, gift cards or other payment.

Alex Judge, pet therapy and community outreach program supervisor for the Children’s Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida, wrote in a statement that through their prevention education efforts, they've been working to bring awareness to the long-term implications of childhood sexual abuse through educational programs.

Judge said one in five youth experience unwanted online exposure to sexually explicit material, while one in nine are sexually exploited online and one in four experience online sexual grooming.

"Take It Down, being launched by NCMEC, will absolutely help to combat these statistics, and decrease access to sexually explicit images that have been used to control and manipulate children," Judge wrote.

Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Twitter @TomasFRoBeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran and Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews.

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: 'Take It Down': National online tool helps combat child sexual abuse