In 2015, the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers decided to mark 18 November as the annual Day for the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse.  It is of course important to tackle these abuses every day, but public and civil sector professionals and other stakeholders can use this day to raise awareness of the issue in their own specific fields of expertise.

Here at the Internet Hotline, in addition to handling the reports submitted to us, we also attach great importance to educating potential victims about online dangers, and raising social awareness about the victims of abuse. It is in this context that we recommend INHOPE’s publication for both professionals and those interested in the subject. We can all do our part to protect children online: if you see any abuse or harmful content online, please let us know by using our reporting form, or by contacting us at internethotline@internethotline.hu!

The publication reviews the legislation and practices of 53 hotlines on five continents, as well as a number of countries that do not operate a hotline but are party to the Lanzarote Convention. In total, the publication assesses the laws and practices of 60 countries, with regard to online child sexual abuse and exploitation. After a detailed introduction to the terminology and technologies used, it provides a brief summary of the relevant rules at the continental and national level, followed by information on the individual hotlines.

The document also addresses the issue of appropriate terminology, as it is important that the term used to describe child sexual abuse is able to convey the extent of the harm caused, and the seriousness of the act. This is because the suffix “pornography” is more use-focused, and does not place the necessary emphasis on the sexual abuse and exploitation of the child in question. It may also suggest that the children are voluntary, consensual participants, which is not, and cannot be, the case. However, only nine of the Member States explicitly use the term “child sexual abuse or exploitation material”, six do not refer to sexual abuse or the pornographic nature of the act, while the legislation of the remaining countries unfortunately still uses the term child pornography.

The summary also provides an overview of the different types of content and the related regulatory solutions in practice in the different member states. This shows a very mixed picture regarding the regulation of drawings, manga and AI-generated content, and the legal status of content that sexualises children, but does not depict sexual abuse.