Increasing amount of illegal online material reported

Increasing amount of illegal online material reported

A majority of the 140 reports were sent through local members of the INHOPE network and local state police forces in Thailand, the Russian Federation, the United States, Germany, the Netherlands and many other countries.

Operators of the Net Patrol said that the INHOPE network was a very effective way of communication between local online mechanisms receiving reports, by providing online mechanisms from 49 different countries to allow direct communication and sharing of the data collected, after which each of the mechanisms, through direct contact, forwards all material thatis judged to be illegal to national police services.

State agencies then conduct investigations, collect evidence and build cases related to possession and sharing of material containing sexual abuse of minors.

One of the reports received by Net Patrol contained a link to a web page with detailed information about ways to buy more than 30 films depicting severe forms of sexual abuse of minors, mostly under the age of 14. The said website was active for only three days before it was reported to Net Patrol. Operators analyzed the site and forwarded all the data to the Serbian police and the INHOPE network. Within 12 hours, the page was removed, while before this was done, all technical data was sent to the national police in the country in which the site was set up.

Net Patrol operators emphasize that the INHOPE network system arranged in this way allows for illegal materials be removed within 24 hours in 80 percent of all cases, while at the same time the police receives useful information about where the material is hosted and about technical details and other types of statistics and information .

Materials containing sexual abuse of minors represent a global problem that goes beyond national borders and requires a coordinated and concerted effort of all internet users, online mechanisms for collecting reports of government agencies and international organizations in order to remove these illegal materials from the internet.

In this way, anyone who reports an example of such material in Serbia directly helps the police around the world to complete their investigation against pedophiles and other abusers of children.