Partnerships
The capability to detect and investigate digital crimes varies across organisations and sectors. While offenders exploit technological advancements to target children, response communities often lag behind. To effectively counter child abuse, we must resource, support, and connect new initiatives in data, technology-driven and preventative approaches within the response industry.
Since July 2022, our Child Protection Fund has identified and supported catalytic partners in this response sector to fortify our collective response.
ICMEC Australia has partnered with eight programs across catalytic data partnerships, technology applications, and prevention services.
Key project highlights include:
Australian RedFlag Accelerator CSE Portal (with RedCompass Labs)
RedCompass Labs is a UK-based payments expert services company. The first recipient of support from our Child Protection Fund, we partnered with RedCompass Labs to localise the Global RedFlag Accelerator Typologies on CSE and, for the first time, make them easily accessible for Australian financial services institutions via an online portal. The Portal provides Australian financial services institutions with access to localised intelligence and trends to assist their work in detecting and reporting of CSE.
Mark Dickson, Executive Manager, Financial Intelligence Unit at Westpac Group, said: “Having been involved from the very first user test group, I see great value in the Portal being used as a one-stop-shop for all Australian banks to access the latest CSE typologies. This is only possible through ICMEC Australia’s work in bringing RedCompass Lab’s global tool to Australia, enhancing the CSE detection capabilities for the Australian FinCrime community.”
In the media
FST Media | Aussie big four banks get added data heft to combat child exploitation
Philanthropy Australia | How big data and philanthropy are taking on child exploitation
Victim Identification Case Data Analysis Program (with Queensland Police Service and led by Task Force Argos Victim Identification Manager, Paul Griffiths)
In this project, ICMEC Australia supported world-leading victim identification expert Paul Griffiths to work with Australian and international law enforcement agencies to review close to 2,500 child exploitation cases and 40 distinct investigative techniques that were successfully employed in the identification of a child or suspected producer of child exploitation material. The analysis was presented to the INTERPOL Specialist Group on Crimes Against Children in early 2024.
Paul Griffiths said he was honoured to be supported for this critical initiative, stating, “I am certainly pleased with the way it has turned out, and INTERPOL was the ideal venue to share the outcomes; the project will be the catalyst for continued developments in the victim identification community.”
Stop it Now! Australia Program (with Jesuit Social Services)
ICMEC Australia has partnered with Jesuit Social Services to support the service adaptation of the global child sexual abuse prevention service model – Stop It Now! – into Australia. The program offers an anonymous helpline, chat, and web resources for people concerned about their own sexual thoughts and behaviours towards children or to people concerned about the thoughts or behaviours of others – aiming to prevent child sexual abuse.
Stop It Now! has seen significant success internationally, including in the UK and Ireland. The knowledge base regarding the behaviours and characteristics of undetected offenders will be enhanced through the data and insights derived from this groundbreaking program in Australia. This will, in turn, assist ICMEC Australia and other stakeholders in the CSE response ecosystem to consider and develop innovative technological approaches to disrupt and prevent child sexual abuse offending from occurring in the first place.
Catalytic data partnerships for the Lighthouse Data Product
ICMEC Australia is collaborating with multiple leading data partners, who are equally invested in the detection and prevention of CSE. Partnerships like these are central to developing ICMEC Australia’s Lighthouse Data Product that provides participating financial services institutions and other key stakeholders with clues and indicators of CSE distribution methods, trends, analytics, and artefacts.
Tracking our impact
ICMEC Australia takes accountability for achieving impact seriously. Our Theory of Change drives us to support improved rates of detection, reporting, prosecution, and prevention of child sexual exploitation (CSE).
In 2024, we will release our first impact report, which covers the first two years of our operations. We’re not waiting to communicate how we’re doing – we’re transparent about what we deliver, even in our early stages. All the projects we choose to work on are thoroughly assessed to ensure their alignment with our core objectives and their specific value-add in the sector.
Our impact goals are all measured and checked quarterly to ensure we’re on track and can identify any challenges.