The surge in child sexual abuse material, generally called CSAM, is compelling technology companies and government to face internet’s serious concern about platform accountability and how can platforms protect children without impacting their privacy?
The scale of the issue is immense. According to the Center for Missing and Exploited Children, US, CyberTipline got 21.3 million reports of suspected child sexual exploitation last year.
These reports consisted of 61.8 million videos, images, and other files, while incidents associated with GenAI also showed an increase. International hotline networks (INHOPE) have also recorded a transition in distribution of materials from traditional websites to online communities and forums, where material can distribute quickly and escape conventional security mechanisms.
What is CSAM?
CSAM contains videos, pictures, and other digital media that depict the sexual exploitation or abuse of minors. CSAM may be disseminated through social media, messaging platforms, online forums, cloud-storage services, or websites.
How tech is making CSAM detection a problem?
Technology has made it easier for criminals to create, store, and share CSAM material. Encrypted messaging, private groups, and anonymous accounts makes it difficult for authorities to catch criminals. GenAI has created new problems as it can be used to produce sexual deepfakes of minors.
Therefore, social media platforms and online communities are under pressure to find, report, and remove CSAM. According to experts, platforms should hold active responsibility when their algorithms, recommendation systems, file-sharing tools, flawed content moderation or private groups can enable sexual abuse or exploitation. Platforms should provide an easy reporting system and co-ordinate with authorities.
Platform accountability
But, taking down content after it is posted is not enough. Platforms should also check if their apps undermine children's privacy or make them more weak. For instance, unrestricted communication, disappearing messages, and anonymous messages between children and adults can increase the risk sexual abuse.
For platform accountability, companies should take responsibility for how their tech is built and used, by ensuring stronger security policies, effective systems to detect illegal content and trained content moderation teams. Companies should also
In India, Section 67B of the Information Technology Act penalises the posting or distribution of sexually explicit material involving minors. India also imposes due-diligence on digital platforms, such as action against illegal content and robust compliance systems for big-tech social media giants. Recent rules also look out for GenAI, as it can be used to create sexual CSAM content.
The main concern is not if platforms should act, but how. Safeguarding children demands responsible technology and firm enforcement.
