New research, legislative movements and AI have been dominating worldwide news over the last two weeks:
- NSW Police unearthed an international child abuse ring as part of Strike Force Packer. Nine men have been charged in NSW with more charged in VIC and WA – https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/hundreds-of-men-snared-as-global-paedophile-video-ring-unearthed-in-sydney-20240220-p5f6ey.html
- Protect Children recently released a new study that surveyed 30,000 active CSAM offenders – https://www.suojellaanlapsia.fi/en/post/tech-platforms-child-sexual-abuse
- The Canadian Government has introduced the Online Harms Act which would establish a Digital Safety Commission and the position of Digital Safety Ombudsperson – https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/news/2024/02/government-of-canada-introduces-legislation-to-combat-harmful-content-online-including-the-sexual-exploitation-of-children.html
- Safety concerns have been raised by the announcement of OpenAI’s highly realistic gen AI tool ‘Sora’ – https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/02/15/openai-sora-artificial-intelligence-videos/
- In the US, the Treasury’s FinCEN issued this trend analysis on online CSE and human trafficking – https://www.fincen.gov/news/news-releases/fincen-sees-increase-bsa-reporting-involving-use-convertible-virtual-currency
- Lucy Faithfull Foundation’s new research found that 70% of respondents are unaware that AI is already being used to abuse children https://www.lucyfaithfull.org.uk/featured-news/a-call-to-end-ai-generated-child-sexual-abuse.htm