Internet and Crimes against Children Essay ⋆ Criminal Justice Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

The expansion of access by children to the Internet, and the wide availability of chat rooms, email, online messaging, webcams, and bulletin boards, have unfortunately led to the possibility that child predators can use this technology to come into contact with unsuspecting children. Each year more and more children are using online technologies and so the possibility of crimes against them using these technologies increases.

A 1999 survey of Internet crimes against children conducted by the Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire found that 1 in 5 children reported being approached or solicited for sex and 1 in 33 were exposed to aggressive sex solicitation over the Internet in the 12 months prior to the survey. One quarter of the children reported that in the preceding year they had unwanted exposure to pictures containing nudity or sex acts.

Internet crimes against children can take many forms. A report by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crime suggests that Internet crimes against children can take the following forms: (a) using online contacts to entice children into meeting with the purpose of sexually abusing the child; (b) using the Internet to produce, manufacture, and dis- tribute child pornography; (c) using the Internet to expose a child to pornography; and (d) enticing a child into travel for the purpose of sexually abusing him or her.

There are several unique aspects of this crime that make it different from other crimes. First, there does not need to be physical contact or even a meeting between the perpetrator and victim. A crime could be committed over the Internet, for example, when a child is exposed to pornography by a perpetrator. Second, such a crime may continue for years even without the child being aware of it, for example, photos or videos of the child may be posted on the Internet. Third, these crimes have no boundaries and can occur across state and national jurisdictions. Finally, some children may not disclose or even be aware that they are victims.

National organizations responding to this issue include the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) that operates the NetSmartz Workshop program, the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Forces nationwide, and several government agencies. NCMEC’s efforts are covered elsewhere in this encyclopedia. The ICAC’s Web site states that it was “created to help State and local law enforcement agencies enhance their investigative response to offenders who use the Internet, online communication systems, or other computer technology to sexually exploit children.” According to the ICAC, there are now 46 regional ICAC task forces.

Bibliography:

S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Victims of Crime (OVC). (2001). Internet crimes against children [OVC bulletin]. Retrieved from https://www.ovc.gov/publications/bulletins/internet_2_2001/welcome.html
Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force: https://www.icactaskforce.org/
NetSmartz Workshop: https://www.netsmartz.org/

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