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Child Exploitation Division
As part of the WiredPatrol branch of Wired Safety, our Child Exploitation Division is dedicated to eradicating all forms of child exploitation on the Internet, including child pornography and sexual molestation. This is accomplished through online and offline awareness, advertising campaigns, and teams that investigate child pornography distribution schemes, and sexual molesters online. We also educate law enforcement agencies, attorneys, the public, and educators worldwide.
Being a member of the Child Exploitation Division involves a substantial amount of time online, where team members come across images that are sometimes horrific and disturbing. This division is not for the faint-hearted. Members are selected by invitation only.
To join the Child Exploitation Division, a potential member must be at least 25 years of age (or be a minimum of 21 years of age and have the approval of the Division Director), have sent in their police letter to WiredSafety, have completed specific advanced Wired-Ed classes, and undertaken intensive team training classes and orientation.
The Child Exploitation Division consists of the following teams*:
Kidslist Team
Our oldest and most successful team's name stands for "Kids in Danger." It was set up to deal with tips we received of child pornography and exploitation. Using tips gathered from the WiredPatrol site and independent searching on the part of our team members, the Kidslist Team compiles a list of active child pornography sites that is sent to law-enforcement agencies (including U.S. Customs), ISPs, portals, hotlines and to the credit card companies/online billing services whose products are being used at those sites. Volunteers of this team are very special. They have to be able to view some of the most horrendous images anyone could ever imagine, of children being sexually molested-as young as only a few months old. This team is responsible for investigating and reporting more than 500 child pornography Web sites each week. They are also responsible for investigating tips of child pornography trading schemes. They know firsthand what the rest of us have learned; behind every picture of child pornography is pain.
Site Tracing Team
As specially trained technology experts, these team members hunt and track sites and individuals who trade in child pornography. Using legal methods, they trace all confirmed child pornography sites to their origin/site owner and people involved, and to their e-mail addresses and offline addresses as well.
* Please note that some teams are still under development.
Division Training/Orientation Team
Provides ongoing, intensive training to all current and potential Child Exploitation Division members. These classes include lessons on the state of the law, investigation methods, understanding which law enforcement agencies have jurisdiction over the site and the child pornographers, and how to determine whether an image falls under the definition of child pornography.
Wired-Ed Child Exploitation Team
This group of Wired-Ed instructors provides information about child exploitation online to other WiredSafety members, members of the general public, parents, law enforcement, educators and children. They also work with our Outreach Teams to provide offline educational and awareness programs on the subject of online child exploitation.
Information and Statistical Development Team
This team reviews statistics we have collected on cases we have handled and sites we have encountered. This allows us to view trends and advise law enforcement, help policymakers understand this crime, and demonstrate how molesters and child pornographers use the technology to cause more harm to children. This team also provides statistical data on trends and the state of cybercrimes against children, including statistics relative to child pornography sites, to educators, to victim groups and to governmental policy groups.
Special Case Team
This team works on special assignments with law enforcement groups to investigate child pornography rings and schemes, as well as locating and tracking child molesters who work online to lure children. This is the only team that acts undercover to flush out child molesters and child pornographers. This work is always done under the express direction of and in cooperation with law enforcement agencies that request our help.
Our Strategic Alliances
Many ISPs and Internet Portals are aiding us in our quest to shut down every child pornography/exploitation site on the Internet. Most of the CEOs we have contacted are more than willing to join and do their part.
Some Statistics
Of the sites reported to our child pornography tip line, approximately 50% are determined by our trained volunteers to consist of child pornography, while the remainder are determined to be teens over the age of consent (18 years), or virtual images not actionable in the applicable country.
We are not only keeping track of how many sites are reported, we are also keeping records of which country they are from, who is the site service provider (ISP), who hosts those sites, and even whether they are a .com or a .net site. We are particularly interested in sites using merchant or credit card payment programs. With this type of information we can find the culprits more easily. We can also lobby to have certain web hosting sites shut down if they are found to have a high percentage of child pornography Web sites that use their service. Credit card providers have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to their services being used by child pornographers at Web sites Should we discover that certain billing service companies are providing merchant account services to child pornography sites even after being apprised of the fact that child pornography exists on those sites, these billing service companies will be investigated as well, and we will pursue charges against those companies under existing criminal laws.
Our Awareness Campaign - "Behind Every Picture There's Pain"
A wonderful advertising agency has kindly developed an awareness program for us to help raise public consciousness and stop the growth of child pornography online. We are looking for publications to print our advertisements as part of this public service campaign. We hope to have these ads appear on television, in major magazines, on radio, and numerous other places. These advertisements will not only inform the public of the existence of such atrocities, but also instruct people about what they can do to help cleanse the Internet of this filth. There will also be campaigns centered on cyberstalking, hacking, harassment and other dangers.
Follow this link to download the "Behind every picture" campaign poster >>
Interested in joining and offering your help?