FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? OVC
FRIDAY, MAY 4, 2001???????????
?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? 202/307-0703
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SPOTLIGHTS CHALLENGES IN HELPING
CHILD
VICTIMS OF INTERNET EXPLOITATION
WASHINGTON, D.C. ? Internet crimes against children present unique challenges for those
serving victims and their families, according to a new bulletin from the
Justice Department?s Office for Victims of Crime (OVC).? In many cases, victims may never see the
offenders and sometimes do not know they are being exploited.
An estimated 10 million children currently
use the Internet, which is expected to increase to 77 million by 2005.? A recent survey showed that 20 percent of
youth who use the Internet received at least one online sexual approach or
solicitation over the course of a year.
?The Internet offers children new
opportunities, but also exposes them to dangers they have not faced before,?
said OVC Acting Director Kathryn Turman.
?Law enforcement officials and victim service providers must take into
account the unique aspects of online exploitation cases when working with child
victims and their families.?
Internet Crimes Against Children offers suggestions for working with child
victims of Internet crime and describes resources available to law enforcement,
victim service providers and families.
The bulletin describes characteristics that distinguish Internet crimes
from other crimes against children:
?
Perpetrators
can exploit children without touching them or even meeting them.
?
The Internet
allows for repeated long term-victimization that can continue even without the
victim?s knowledge.
?
The crimes can
transcend communities, states or even countries.
?
Many children
do not even know they were victimized or report their victimization.
In some cases, children may send innocent
pictures of themselves online, which offenders then transform into pornographic
images.? Children and their families may
never find out about this exploitation unless it is discovered by law
enforcement.? Children who were
unwitting participants in their exploitation may have especially pronounced
feelings of shame and guilt.? Some may
deny their involvement.
The nature of Internet crimes against
children can present other problems.
When the offender lives outside the community, it is difficult for
victims and their families to attend hearings, trials or depositions.
The OVC bulletin provides
information about CyberTipline (www.missingkids.com/cybertip), an online
form for reporting suspected child sexual exploitation operated by the National
Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in partnership with the FBI,
U.S. Customs Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.? NCMEC, which is supported by the Justice Department?s
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), also operates
the Child Pornography Tipline (1-800/843-5678).
OJJDP also administers the
Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Program, which helps state
and local law enforcement agencies acquire skills, equipment and resources
needed to respond to ICAC cases.? OJJDP
currently supports 30 ICAC task forces, which also provide prevention,
education, investigative and other assistance to parents, teachers, law
enforcement and other professionals.
Copies of Internet Crimes Against Children,
as well as information about other OVC publications, programs and conferences,
are available through the OVC Website at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc and from
the OVC Resource Center at 1-800/627-6872.
Information about other Office of Justice
Programs (OJP) bureaus and program offices is available at www.ojp.usdoj.gov.? Media should contact OJP?s Office of
Congressional and Public Affairs at 202/307-0703.? ????????
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OVC 01100