NPCC: Spike in cyber child sex abuse ‘shows how vital raising awareness is’

Forces are being urged to ensure officers understand how to protect children from online sexual offences after a 44 per cent rise in internet-enabled abuse. A total of 5,653 child sex crimes recorded in England and Wales last year involved an online element, according to figures obtained by the NSPCC. The total – 1,750 higher than in 2015/16 – means an average of 15 offences were recorded every day. The most common age for victims was 13, although almost 100 cases involved children under ten and the youngest victim was just three years old. The NSPCC called on policing to raise officers’ awareness of how the web is used to target children, how to investigate online abuse and how best to safeguard victims. The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) believes greater reporting may have played a role in the increase but admitted the service is responding to these issues on a significant scale. Chief Constable Simon Bailey, NPCC lead for child protection, said the figures “highlight the importance” of building resilience in young people and educating them about sexual relationships. Mr Bailey told Police Professional: “This can’t be left to chance. “I know from my own force that we are engaging with schools more than ever to educate and raise awareness of both the different forms of abuse and how to get support. “It is clear from the increase in the number of reports we are receiving how vital this work is.” A Freedom of Information request revealed 3,903 sexual offences against children were ‘cyber-flagged’ by forces in the 12 months to June 2016. The NSPCC said the increase this year shows a “worrying trend” developing in how offenders are targeting children. The charity is calling for the introduction of an independent regulator to hold social media companies to account and issue fines if they fail to protect children. It has also requested minimum safeguarding standards that internet companies must reach, and better protection as part of default privacy settings on social media accounts. NSPCC chief executive Peter Wanless said the figures “confirm our fears that offenders are exploiting the internet to target children for their own dark deeds”. He added: “We cannot sit idly by knowing that more and more innocent young people are being harmed online. “Today’s worrying data leaves the next government with no choice but to urgently address this issue. We are calling on them to force internet companies and social media sites to adhere to rules that keep their young users safe.”