This groundbreaking report, often referred to as ICMEC's Rule of Law project, analyzes child sexual abuse material (CSAM) legislation in 196 countries around the world, and offers a “menu” of concepts to be considered when drafting anti-CSAM legislation. First released in April 2006, the report is currently in its 10^th edition. The latest edition's findings show that since inception 150 countries have refined or implemented new anti-CSAM legislation, 140 countries criminalize simple CSAM possession, 125 countries define CSAM, and only 32 countries require ISP reporting of suspected CSAM.Read More

October 2021 (ICMEC, Romulo Mabanta Buenaventura Sayoc & Delos Angeles) The purpose of this paper is to strengthen the child protection legal framework such that it leaves no child in the Philippines vulnerable to sexual exploitation and abuse. The analysis and recommendations reflect the real-world challenges faced by dozens of professionals navigating the, admittedly, robust child protection legal framework in the Philippines, and recommendations from a diverse stakeholder group that supports the child protection agenda. The paper enumerates several impediments faced by law enforcement, regulators, policymakers, private industry, civil society, and others to advance effective action to combat this crime. Through practical recommendations, we endeavor to detail the current legal statutes that hinder or collectively challenge operational action by the diverse stakeholder group. We respectfully urge policymakers in the Philippines Congress to take up the cause and support the review, revision, and/or drafting of new legislation that will address the challenges identified to close the gaps that still exist leaving our children vulnerable.Read More

This groundbreaking report, often referred to as ICMEC's Rule of Law project, analyzes child sexual abuse material (CSAM) legislation in 196 countries around the world, and offers a “menu” of concepts to be considered when drafting anti-CSAM legislation. First released in April 2006, the report is currently in its 9^th edition. The latest edition's findings show that since inception 150 countries have refined or implemented new anti-CSAM legislation, 140 countries criminalize simple CSAM possession, 125 countries define CSAM, and only 32 countries require ISP reporting of suspected CSAM. For a brief overview of the 9^th edition click here.Read More

(ICMEC) The purpose of this paper is to define and analyze sexual extortion and nonconsensual pornography as they impact children, as well as to better understand obstacles to prevention, policy intervention, and prosecution. This paper, framed with a global perspective, also presents effective, model legislative responses and highlights global efforts that are readily adaptable by individual countries to combat the growing number of cases of children who are exploited via sexual extortion and the nonconsensual sharing of intimate images.Read More

(ECPAT International) The Terminology Guidelines for the protection of children from sexual exploitation and sexual abuse ("Luxembourg Guidelines") are a tool guiding child protection professionals all over the world in their choice of words. Adopted by large consensus by the Interagency Working Group (IWG), composed of major international child protection agencies, they contribute to a more coherent, but also a more adequate and child-centered terminology in the work against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse. To respond to the needs expressed by child protection professionals, and make sure that the Luxembourg Guidelines can be a useful tool for professionals at all levels, ECPAT International developed this Handbook to facilitate the translation and adaptation of the Luxembourg Guidelines into other languages.

(ICMEC) This paper examines several cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, and the Blockchain architecture that supports them.  It provides a summary of the underground and illicit uses of the currencies, as well as ramifications for law enforcement and industry.  Read More

(Children’s Charities’ Coalition on Internet Safety, ICMEC) This report describes the impact of the Internet on the production and distribution of child pornography. It makes a number of suggestions about how states can join in the global fight against this vile misuse of cyber-space. In particular, the report presents a range of legal measures which Commonwealth Member States might consider adopting and it sets them in the context of wider initiatives designed to make the Internet a safer place for children and young people the world over. The primary audience for the toolkit is the Commonwealth but it is hoped that it might be of interest to a wider range of countries and professionals with an interest in child protection. This is the third edition of the toolkit. It updates the second edition, published in 2012.Read More

(ICMEC) Developed as a supplement to Child Pornography: Model Legislation & Global Review, this unique review looks at whether the 161 countries having anti-child pornography legislation in place as of the release of the 8^th Edition of the Model Legislation report are taking steps to support their national legislation. ICMEC assessed implementation efforts using a menu of concepts – 7 benchmarks – that represent well-rounded national responses. The report contains a detailed explanation of the benchmarks along with country-specific information.Read More

(ICMEC, UNICEF) The primary objective of these guidelines is to determine whether laws and policies exist in Latin America that address prevention, reporting mechanisms, tools, and specialized units for the investigation and prosecution of crimes related to online child sexual abuse and exploitation through the review of the regulatory frameworks in each country. The guidelines are intended to be used by relevant stakeholders including law enforcement, investigators, prosecutors, judges, and governmental and non-governmental organizations seeking to promote reform in legislation and in their fields of action, as well as to advocate for the development and reform of policies concerning prevention, victim assistance, and investigation of production, sale, distribution, and possession of child sexual abuse material.Read More

(UNICEF) UNICEF commissioned this report to better understand online risks faced by children, identify gaps in legislation, ensure removal of harmful materials, support investigation and law enforcement and to identify services for victims of online exploitation and abuse. The aim was to identify priorities for government, NGOs, IT companies and other international agencies and determine appropriate interventions.Read More

(UKCCIS) Produced by the UK Counsel for Child Internet Safety, this cornerstone advice is for school heads and child protection designates or designated safeguarding leads on youth produced sexual imagery. Research found that 61% of secondary school head teachers reported this as a greater concern than smoking, drugs, obesity or offline bullying. This advice covers responding to disclosures, handling devices and imagery, assessing risk, reporting protocols, recording incidents, involving parents, supporting victims and victimizers, and preventative safeguarding and IT education. Resource lists, reporting forms, incident flow charts and staff training materials are included.Read More

(UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Regional Office) This report provides a benchmark of Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Member States’ current efforts to effectively and comprehensively address child sexual abuse and exploitation, both online and offline.Read More

(ECPAT, Terminology and Semantics Interagency Working Group on Sexual Exploitation of Children) The purpose of this document is to provide all individuals and agencies working for the prevention and elimination of all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children with guidance for the understanding and use of the different terms and concepts they may encounter in their work.  Read More

(ICMEC, The World Bank, Associação dos Juízes Federais da Primeira Região do Brasil) In the framework of the Global Forum on Law, Justice and Development, ICMEC, The World Bank and Associação dos Juízes Federais da Primeira Região do Brasil published a Latin America regional study on legislative responses for the protection of children from violence through Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in response to a growing concern over the use of ICTs to commit violence against children.

(ICMEC, The World Bank) In the framework of the Global Forum on Law, Justice and Development, ICMEC and The World Bank published an Asian regional study on legislative responses for the protection of children from violence through Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in response to a growing concern over the use of ICTs to commit violence against children.Read More

(ICMEC, Thomson Reuters) This report of the Digital Economy Task Force, led by ICMEC and Thomson Reuters, explores the benefits and risks of the emerging digital economy, and provides recommendations for policymakers, financial institutions, law enforcement, and others.Read More

(ICMEC, APAC-FCACP) The goal of this paper is to help companies manage risk and relationships by providing information on the digital platforms/business models that can be abused for the purpose of distributing child sexual exploitation content.Read More

(ICMEC, APAC-FCACP), This report details what precautions file sharing and file hosting companies can take to help ensure that child sexual exploitation content is not stored, hosted, reproduced, or distributed by users of their services.Read More

(Barnardo’s) Research focused on running away, child sexual exploitation (CSE) and youth homelessness has documented an intrinsic relationship between running away and CSE. However, a review of this research literature reveals that none of the research projects addressing running away have explored the issue of CSE in depth. Previous research has started to explore the relationship between running away and CSE but there is need for research that explicitly explores this relationship. In recognition of this gap in learning, Barnardo’s and Paradigm Research developed a proposal to undertake an action research study to address the relationship between running away and CSE in England. This report presents their findings.Read More

(ICMEC, Children’s Charities’ Coalition on Internet Safety) This report updated the one previously released in 2010, and describes the impact of the Internet on the production and distribution of child pornography. It presents a range of legal measures that Commonwealth Member States might consider adopting, and it sets them in the context of wider initiatives designed to make the Internet a safer place for children and young people around the world.Read More

(U.S. FCACP) The intent of this report is to highlight emerging trends in cybercrime/cybersecurity and to evoke thought and discussion about their potential impact on the child safety arena. Each section delves into examples of activities that have garnered the attention of the researchers and professionals working to combat cybercrime.Read More

(NCMEC & OJJDP) This publication hopes to address and improve this situation for the benefit of the victims, investigators, and prosecutors. While society has become increasingly more aware of the problem of the acquaintance molester and related problems such as child pornography, the voice calling the public to focus only on “stranger danger” and many child-abuse professionals to focus only on intrafamilial sexual abuse still persists. Sexual-exploitation cases involving acquaintance molesters present many investigative challenges, but they also present the opportunity to obtain a great deal of corroborative evidence, get solid convictions, and prevent continued victimization.Read More

(ICMEC, Children’s Charities’ Coalition on Internet Safety) This report describes the impact of the Internet on the production and distribution of child pornography. It presents a range of legal measures which Commonwealth Member States might consider adopting and sets them in the context of wider initiatives designed to make the Internet a safer place for children and young people the world over.Read More

(U.S. FCACP) This paper, written by the U.S. Financial Coalition Against Child Pornography’s Technology Challenges Working Group, addresses current trends in migration, hosting and payment specific to commercial child pornography websites.Read More

(U.S. FCACP) This document contains a compilation of methods that some U.S. Financial Coalition Against Child Pornography members have used in their application and verification process, and thereafter, to detect child pornographers and prevent them from establishing or maintaining merchant accounts.Read More

(ICMEC) In October 2005, representatives from 20 countries, the United Nations, EU institutions, and the Council of Europe participated in the first‐ever U.S./European Summit on Missing and Exploited Children. This report is a summary of those proceedings.Read More

(ICMEC) The report includes findings from the April 2005 Lyon Forum, which explored the current state of and emerging trends in child pornography, assessed the progress made on the Dublin Plan, and adjusted its recommendations for future actions accordingly.Read More

(ICMEC) This report is a synopsis of the results from our October 2002 forum in Dublin on child pornography, as well as a “Call to Action” (the Dublin Plan) to those who care about the world’s children and protecting them from victimization.Read More