Wednesday April 24, 2024, town of Thann, near Mulhouse, in Alsace: the French gendarmerie arrests 12 German nationals and two Americans. At the same time, five other suspects were picked up from their home, across the Rhine, by the German police. The exploitation of their cell phones, digital tablets and computers makes it possible to confirm the dismantling of a child pornography network.
The EU, the largest host of child pornography content
Nice shot! The fact remains that it is only a slap in the face, delivered to the hideous face of the global child pornography market. The number of reports of online child sexual abuse in the EU increased from 23,000 in 2010 to more than 725,000 in 2019, involving more than three million images and videos
. In 2022 alone, 1.5 million cases of sexual abuse against children were reported in the European Union, which has the sad privilege of having become the largest host of child pornography content in the world.
Everything about the 2024 Europeans
“We really need to keep up the pace”
Rules to prevent and combat child sexual abuse were enacted in 2011, then strengthened in 2022. That year, the Commission ordered Internet providers to report child sexual abuse online and remove the material. of their services. Digital rights advocates blasted a regime of mass surveillance that would “sound the death knell for digital privacy.” “Given the speed of development in the digital age, we really need to keep up,” insisted Ylva Johansson, European Commissioner for Home Affairs.
Exchange of pedophile manuals targeted
On February 6, 2024, the Commission decided to update these rules, to broaden the definitions of offenses and provide for heavier sanctions.
This new battery of provisions plans to broaden the definitions of criminal offenses. Their scope will now include the live broadcast of sexual abuse committed against children, as well as the production and distribution of “deepfakes” and material generated by AI (Artificial Intelligence). The possession and exchange of pedophile manuals, which describe how to approach, coax and manipulate children, then conceal the evidence, also falls within the scope of the new offences.
The extended limitation period
The period during which victims can report the sexual abuse they have suffered and file a complaint against the perpetrator is extended. For the most serious offenses, it will increase to “at least 30 years after the victim reaches the age of majority”.
Member States also want to increase investment in raising awareness of online risks. A reporting obligation will also be imposed on professionals working in close contact with children. These provisions will soon be debated in the European Parliament and the Council.
