The INHOPE Annual Report 2020 is here!

2020 has undoubtedly been an unprecedented year, characterised by increased online presence, distance learning and teleworking. How has the situation impacted on children’s and youth online safety? INHOPE is involved in the fight against child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online with its network of hotlines. In its Annual Report 2020, it analyses the evolution of such sensitive content. Some of the key statistics and highlights are summarised below.

Date 2021-05-11 Author INHOPE Section hotlines Topic potentially harmful content, sexting, sextortion, sexual harassment Audience organisations and industry, research, policy and decision makers, teachers, educators and professionals
We are confronted with a deluge of content reported to our hotlines, which challenges our limits and forces us to respond in new ways. However, we are resilient, and here is why: the strength of our stride comes from our people.

Jean-Christophe Le Toquin, President of the INHOPE Board

To enable the network to continue ensuring online safety, the INHOPE mandate has two pillars: people and technology. This is reflected both in INHOPE’s efforts, and in the statistics and highlights featured in this year’s Annual Report.

INHOPE Annual Report 2020, Don't Ignore it, Report it!

INHOPE’s impact in 2020

  • Over one million content URLs, each containing multiple images and videos, were entered into INHOPE’s secure platform, which is used by member hotlines to classify, collect, and exchange reports of child sexual abuse material with the network and Interpol.
  • CSAM is being taken down faster. 74 per cent of content (globally) was removed within three days in 2020 compared to 50 per cent in 2019. The pace is roughly 50 per cent faster than last year.
  • 40 per cent of CSAM in 2020 was new material. It was not previously seen and assessed by hotlines.
  • INHOPE is present in roughly 60 per cent of countries where CSAM is hosted.
  • Dutch, Austrian and UK hotlines reported 50 per cent of all CSAM URLs processed in 2020 by INHOPE.
  • INHOPE trained 66 hotline staff.

Trends and statistics

  •  Age of victims: in 2019, 90 per cent of victims were aged between 3 and 13. In 2020, this age range featured in 76 per cent of the child sexual abuse material reported to INHOPE. This is also reflected in a rise in those between the ages of 14 and 17, at 22 per cent in 2020, up from 8 per cent in 2019.
  • Girls remain at much higher risk of sexual abuse than boys: 93 per cent of victims in 2020 were girls, up from 91 per cent in 2019. Both boys and girls are vulnerable to sexual abuse. 
  • The way that child sexual abuse material is being shared is changing: websites are replacing image hosting sites as the main site type being used to store CSAM.

Highlights of the report

The full INHOPE Annual Report 2020 includes:

  •  a new Board, presided by Jean-Christophe Le Toquin, and whose term will last two years.
  • discussion of assessing and removing CSAM under lockdown, as well as the workarounds which hotlines managed to find.
  • celebration of new member ECPAT (the worldwide network of organisations working to end the sexual exploitation of children) Philippines and enhanced membership status of CyberSafety Cyprus, as well as an update on the latest network expansion efforts across the globe.
  • introduction of new End Violence Against Children (EVAC)-funded project ESCAPE to develop an eco-system to ensure that every industry stakeholder and each member of the public around the globe has the option and awareness to report CSAM encountered online.
  • details of Project AviaTor, an efficient tool that helps law enforcement agencies prioritise all aspects of NCMEC reports so that they can focus on identifying perpetrators and saving victims.

For more information on the work of hotlines in combatting child sexual abuse material, please see the INHOPE website at www.inhope.org or contact communications@inhope.org. 

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