So far in the 21st century nearly a third of a billion children have been sexually abused, most of them multiple times, some thousands of times. 6 out of 7 are girls. Anything you can do to get this message to as many people as possible will help save abused children all over the world, and maybe even some of the abusers. Please read "Save A Child from Sexual Abuse by 3:15 PM" under "First Time Visitor?" May God bless you and anoint this ministry.
Everyday thousands of children are being sexually abused. You can stop the abuse of at least one child by simply praying. You can possibly stop the abuse of thousands of children by forwarding the link in First Time Visitor? by email, Twitter or Facebook to every Christian you know. Save a child or lots of children!!!! Do Something, please!
3:15 PM prayer in brief:
Pray for God to stop 1 child from being molested today.
Pray for God to stop 1 child molestation happening now.
Pray for God to rescue 1 child from sexual slavery.
Pray for God to save 1 girl from genital circumcision.
Pray for God to stop 1 girl from becoming a child-bride.
If you have the faith pray for 100 children rather than one.
European authorities on Thursday said cases such as that of Gisele Pelicot (C) are not rare, with an international operation disrupting four online networks of men sharing videos, photos and information about during and sexually assaulting women, often their own partners. File Photo by Guillaume Horcajuelo/EPA
July 3 (UPI) --Authorities have uncovered international networks of men accused of drugging and sexually assaulting women, most often their own partners, then sharing videos and photos of the crimes with one another online.
Announced Thursday, the coordinated law enforcement efforts disrupted four online communities that authorities said played a significant role in enabling and normalizing what Europol called "drug-facilitated sexual assaults."
According to authorities, the international investigation targeted drug-facilitated sexual assaults in intimate partner relationships.
The victims, almost exclusively women, are sedated with drugs or alcohol before they are sexually assaulted, sometimes by multiple offenders, without their knowledge.
Identifying information about those arrested was not made public, but the authorities said they were in long-term relationships with their victims, who were often unaware of the crimes, which were sometimes committed for decades.
Project Medusa, launched in April and led by British and German authorities, resulted in the identification of 156 perpetrators and victims and 274 investigative leads, as well as 57 arrests and 113 investigations launched.
Separately, Britain's National Crime Agency said an investigation launched in October 2025 identified more than 270 individuals linked to one particular online forum and its successors, with more than 210 packages of intelligence sent to law enforcement partners in Britain and overseas.
"This is a deeply distressing form of sexual offending and domestic abuse, and we recognize the enormity of the impact on victims, particularly where the person responsible is someone known and trusted," Deputy Assistant Commissioner Helen Millichap, director of the National Center for Violence Against Women and Girls and Public Protection, said in a statement.
"In many cases, victims may not realize what has happened to them at the time. They may only become aware through police contact or emerging evidence, which can be extremely confusing and difficult to process."
The investigations come after the case of Gisele Pelicot gained international attention last year.
Pelicot was a victim of mass rape. Her ex-husband, Dominique Pelicot, was convicted of drugging and raping her and inviting dozens of other men to participate, all without her knowledge.
The international authorities said Thursday that the networks they disrupted show that Pelicot is not the only victim of this type of crime.
"The abuse we're discussing is some of the most horrifying I have ever seen in my career," Siobhan Blake, National CPS lead for Rape and Serious Sexual Offenses, said in a statement.
"This offending thrives in secrecy online and behind closed doors. It is the job of the criminal justice system to bring it out into the open to deliver for victims and survivors."
A new report from Statistics Canada found that despite a 16 per cent year-over-year decrease, the rate of online child sexual exploitation has increased by 347 per cent in Canada since 2014.
The report, based on data from 2023-24, found that police services from across the country reported a total of 16,905 incidents of online child sexual exploitation (OCSE) in a single year.
The StatCan report released Tuesday also found that the number of reported online sexual offences against children increased by 182 per cent in a 10-year timespan.
What is considered online child sexual exploitation?
The term OSCE includes a “wide range” of Criminal Code offences that are grouped into two categories, StatCan said, providing the following definitions:
Online sexual offences against children – Examples include luring, inviting to sexual touching and non-consensual distribution of intimate images involving victims aged 17 years and younger; and
Online child sexual abuse and exploitation material offences – Formerly known as child pornography offences.
Police-reported incidents in 2023-24
According to the report, the rate of online sexual offences against children continued to rise in 2024, as police-reported incidents of the offences rose by 43 per cent in a year, mainly due to a “sharp” increase in the number of “luring incidents.”
“Consistent with previous years, luring — the offence of communicating with a child or youth online for the purpose of committing a sexual offence — accounted for almost three-quarters (74 per cent) of all police-reported online sexual offences against children in 2024,” the StatCan report said.
The report called it the “highest rate on record since comparable data became available in 2014.”
Majority of OSCE victims were girls
The rate of police-reported online sexual exploitation was the highest for girl victims, the report found. Out of the 1,649 children and youth victims of the offences in 2024, three-quarters or 78 per cent were girls.
The report also found that the rate of reported online sexual offences against children was almost four times higher for girls than boys.
However, the report added that there was a drop in the number of online child sexual abuse and exploitation material incidents reported to police in 2024 from the previous year by 26 per cent, driving the overall rate of incidents to fall. This was partially due to more cases – current and historical – being brought forward to the authorities by specialized provincial or federal internet child exploitation police units.
Methodology
The report is based on a Uniform Crime Reporting Survey (UCR) that collects data from criminal incidents that were reported to the Canadian authorities and examines the incidents, focusing on the characteristics of the OSCE incidents, victims and accused persons.
The variations in the rates of incidents between years may be due to differences in recognition, reporting and investigation of the incidents, rather than changes in occurrence.
Tyler Allen manipulated five children into sending him intimate images and videos [Gloucestershire Constabulary
A 'cruel manipulator' who asked young girls to send him explicit images and then threatened to kill and rape one when she refused to meet him has been sentenced to 22 months in a young offenders' institution.
Tyler Allen, of Vicarage Court in Brockworth, Gloucestershire, manipulated five victims into sending him intimate images and videos of themselves in 2023.
He pleaded guilty to six counts of causing/inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, two charges of causing a child to watch a sexual act and two charges of engaging in sexual communication with a child.
Allen, 20, who committed the offences when he was aged 17 and 18, was sentenced on Thursday at Gloucester Crown Court.
The court was told that Allen's offending followed a common pattern of him manipulating online conversations with girls to become sexual.
It heard that when the girls resisted, he used emotional manipulation by saying he loved them or that he would harm himself if they did not comply.
He asked a 12-year-old to meet him on her 13th birthday, and when she made an excuse not to, he threatened to rape and kill her.
In a separate incident, he demanded images from a 15 year-old girl and then threatened to post them on social media platforms if she did not send more.
The other charges related to online contact with children aged between 12 and 15.
'He exploited children'
Allen, who made his guilty pleas in July, was then arrested and charged following an investigation by Gloucestershire Police's Child Exploitation Team.
Investigating officer, Police Staff Investigator Amber Jones said: "Allen cruelly manipulated and exploited children for his own sexual gratification.
"The victims in this case have shown great courage in coming forward, especially as what he did to them is an exceptionally difficult topic for people of any age to talk about," she added.
As well as the detention sentence, he was given a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.
Individuals charged with sexual offenses against adults are also at high risk of committing crimes against children.Up to 40% of these individuals reported interest in sexual violence against children aged 0–3 years, and 80% have been charged with other types of violent crimes. Alarmingly, many continue to seek child sexual abuse material and attempt to contact children despite having been previously charged.
These are findings from a recently published in Child Abuse & Neglect. The unique international study where researchers gathered data from sexual offenders operating on the dark web. The goal was to gain deeper insight into the methods, patterns and trends of online sexual violence against children. The study was conducted as part of the Knowledge to Protect (2KNOW) project led by Protect Children, in collaboration with the University of Eastern Finland and the Council of the Baltic Sea States.
Support for criminal investigations
The researchers analyzed 2,384 anonymous responses gathered from users of the dark web. Most respondents were young men aged 18–34 who sought child sexual abuse material involving girls.
The respondents were non-incarcerated individuals actively seeking child sexual abuse material via search engines available on the dark web. The study compared individuals who had been charged with a sexual offense vs. those who had not been charged, finding significant differences in their behaviors and motivations.
"Those who had been charged with a sexual offense had, significantly more often than those who had not been charged, a background in other violent crimes as well, and they were more often in contact with children, or sought to lure children into contact with them.These individuals also expressed the keenest interested in child sexual abuse material involving very young children," says University Lecturer and Forensic Psychologist Hanna Lahtinen of the University of Eastern Finland.
The dark web is an increasingly prominent platform for distributing child sexual abuse material. According to the latest estimates, more than 300 million children fall victim to online sexual violence every year. Most users of this material go unnoticed by law enforcement, and little is known about users of child sexual abuse material who have not been convicted.
300 million children per year!!!! There are about 2.5 bn children alive today. 300 mn X 18 years (one generation of childhood) = 5.4 bn - more than twice as many children as there are in the world. And that is just online child sex abuse.
"We were particularly surprised by the fact that many respondents reported continuing their criminal activity despite being charged. Previous studies have estimated recidivism to be low."
I suspect those previous studies were conducted by psychologists involved in treating pedophiles and who had a vested interest in making themselves look good.
The new findings emerging from the study, including those related to offenders' motivations, are useful for planning interventions and preventive measures, as well as for criminal investigations.
Multiple underlying factors—researchers also identify prevention methods
The findings showed that a common factor underlying these crimes is an individual's sexual interest in children. However, other factors also play a role, such as issues with emotional regulation, high sex drive and a thrill-seeking nature. Factors that lower the threshold for committing these crimes include adverse childhood experiences, substance abuse and desensitization to adult pornography.
"This type of criminal behavior is also facilitated by the rapid development of technology, the anonymity provided by the internet and easy access to content depicting sexual violence," Lahtinen notes.
Individuals seeking material depicting sexual violence against children identified effective crime prevention methods, including intervention programs and warning messages that increase the fear of getting caught and facing serious legal consequences.
An effective model of peer support for parents of children who have fallen victim to sexual violence
Another objective of the two-year 2KNOW project was to develop and offer a model of peer support for parents and guardians whose child has fallen victim to sexual violence.
The model was prepared based on information and experiences gathered from Protect Children's You Are Enough peer support groups. Previously, many parents have been left completely alone to deal with a burdensome situation, unable to share their stressful experiences with anyone.
"Many have tried to support both their child and other family members without receiving any support themselves. Parents found peer support, especially that received in online groups, valuable. As a result, they were also better able to support their child," says Nina Vaaranen-Valkonen, Executive Director of Protect Children.
Drawing on the positive experiences gained, these support groups will be offered to parents both in Finland and internationally. Furthermore, Protect Children's guides for parents will be translated into different languages. The goal of the peer support model, led by professionals, and the guides, is not only to support parents but also to provide information and guidance, and to support the child's recovery process while also promoting digital safety skills.
More than 18,000 respondents already
Held in the European Parliament, the 2KNOW project's final conference attracted significant interest, with over 350 participants from 36 countries attending. The conference program also included speeches by decision-makers. The keynote speaker, the European Commission's Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy Henna Virkkunen promised in her speech to promote children's digital safety across the EU.
The survey related to the study is still open on the dark web, having attracted over 18,400 responses so far. The survey is available in a total of 15 different languages.
Vaaranen-Valkonen notes that determined efforts to protect children continue and are strengthened by research.
"We have ensured that the project's findings are being implemented in practice. Our newest research project will continue to focus on offenders, delving deeper into the role of technology in online sexual crimes against children."
'Loophole' in law on messaging apps leaves children vulnerable to sexual abuse, says NSPCC
NSPCC chief executive Chris Sherwood says the number of crimes being recorded is "deeply alarming" and urges the government to toughen up incoming safeguards in the Online Safety Act.
Nearly 39,000 child sex abuse image crimes were recorded last year - with an "unacceptable loophole" in the law leaving children vulnerable on messaging services, says the NSPCC.
Snapchat was the app that came up most often in the 7,300 cases where a platform was recorded, according to the children's charity.
The NSPCC says it believes the secrecy offered by one-to-one messaging services is being used "to harm children and go undetected".
It says Home Office data shows more than 38,685 such crimes were logged in England and Wales in 2023/24 - equivalent to more than 100 a day.
Police made a note of the service used in just over 7,300 of those cases. Of those, 50% took place on Snapchat, 11% on Instagram, 7% on Facebook and 6% on WhatsApp.
The NSPCC is among several charities, including Barnardo's, who have written to the home secretary and technology secretary urging them to strengthen the implementation of the Online Safety Act.
Ofcom is in charge of enforcing the new law, but charities say its recent code of practice contains a loophole as it only requires direct messaging services to remove content if it's "technically feasible".
The NSPCC also wants the platforms themselves to ensure they aren't a "safe haven" for abusers.
It says those that use end-to-end encryption - where the company is unable to view the messages - can be "blinded to child sexual abuse material being shared".
An illustration of the type of crime taking place can be seen in the experience of one 13-year-old victim cited by the NSPCC.
She said: "I sent nude pics and videos to a stranger I met on Snapchat. I think he's in his thirties. I don't know what to do next.
"I told him I didn't want to send him any more pictures and he started threatening me, telling me that he'll post the pictures online."
4:40
How one photo led to sexual abuse of 11-year-old
NSPCC chief executive Chris Sherwood called the situation "deeply alarming" and called on the government to take urgent action.
"Having separate rules for private messaging services lets tech bosses off the hook from putting robust protections for children in place. This enables crimes to continue to flourish on their platforms even though we now have the Online Safety Act," he said.
The act was passed in 2023 and requires social media firms to reduce illegal and harmful content, but its protections are only just taking effect through Ofcom codes of practice.
Last month, the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), a charity that helps remove child abuse material, also said the codes gave platforms a "blatant get-out clause".
However, an Ofcom spokesperson said it anticipated most services would be able to remove harmful content.
"The law says that measures in our codes of practice must be technically feasible," said a statement.
"However, we expect the vast majority of platforms will be able to take content down and we will hold them to account if they don't.
"There'll be measures all platforms will need to take to protect children, such as reviewing child sexual abuse material when they become aware of it and reporting it to law enforcement."
A government spokesperson said: "Child sexual exploitation and abuse is despicable, and has a devastating impact on victims. UK law is clear: child sexual abuse is illegal and social media is no exception, so companies must ensure criminal activity cannot proliferate on their sites.
"The government is committed to the robust implementation of the Online Safety Act to ensure it delivers on its aim to make the UK the safest place online for children.
"We have already introduced four new laws to crack down on child sexual abuse online, but tech company design choices cannot be used as an excuse not to root out these heinous crimes - and we will not hesitate to go further to protect children from vile online predators."
Snapchat told Sky News the report does not reflect the seriousness of its efforts to counter this kind of abuse and that when it is made aware of sexually exploitative content on its platforms, "we remove it, lock the violating account, and report to authorities".
"Snapchat is designed to make it difficult for predators to find and interact with young people and has extra safeguards in place to help prevent strangers from connecting with teens," a Snapchat spokesperson said.
"Our Family Centre also allows parents to see who their teens are friends with and talking to on Snapchat.
"We work with expert NGOs, and industry peers to jointly attack these problems and don't believe the methodology used in this report reflects the seriousness of our collective commitment and efforts," they said.
Sheep-Skinned Wolves > The Emma Fretton Story - Now in Kindle
Available in Kindle format on May 4th, 2024
- FREE for Kindle Unlimited members
Over the past few years I have had the privilege of writing Emma's Story with her even while she lives in Australia and I in Canada. It's a true story and a disturbing one on many levels. But it is also just one of millions of such stories that are not being told and are being largely ignored by governments, the press, and even churches around the world.
Gary Wm. Myers
Sheep-Skinned Wolves: The Emma Fretton Story
by Emma Joy Fretton (Author), Gary Wm Myers (Author)
Emma excitedly enters primary school anticipating good things, but almost immediately is physically, sexually, and emotionally abused by her paedophile teacher. She's courageous enough to report the horrible abuse, but the school administration's response was frustrating and infuriating, making promises that were never kept and even lying to her face. Inexplicably, the school, a Christian school, allows the deviate teacher to continue terrifying and torturing Emma for several years. What that does to Emma is devastating on so many levels. How could this have happened in a Christian school?
Child sexual abuse is far more prevalent than most people would believe, affecting as many as 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 6 boys. The effects are almost always life-long and very negative. In the Appendix, Gary, the co-author, describes these effects as well as signs to help identify when sexual abuse is occurring to your child. There is a wealth of other information on paedophilia learned from more than 6,500 blog posts over the past 12 years.
