INHOPE releases 2019 annual report

2019 has been a year of growth in both size and strength for the INHOPE network, which saw the amount of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) processed by hotlines nearly double from 2017 to 2019.

Date 2020-07-29 Author BIK Team Section awareness, hotlines

2019 has been a year of growth in both size and strength for the INHOPE network, which saw the amount of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) processed by hotlines nearly double from 2017 to 2019.

The annual report contains an overview of INHOPE, looks at ICCAM* and the Notice & Takedown procedures used by the network's hotlines, and includes a review of 2019 with key figures and takeaways.

Accordingly, in 2019 INHOPE onboarded six new hotlines (from Thailand, Cambodia, Portugal, Spain, Hungary and Cyprus). The network processed 183,788 reports, which altogether contained 456,055 images and videos, out of which 320,672 were assessed to be illegal. 73 per cent of the illegal content reported to INHOPE member hotlines was removed from the host site within six days.

Looking at the network's highlights of the year, INHOPE mentions their contribution to the Economist's Out of the Shadows – Shining light on the response to child sexual abuse and exploitation project, their participation in the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) programme, and the revamp of their visual identity, among other actions.

The report also looks at INHOPE's involvement in other projects such as ICCAM and AviaTor**, and provides an update on the INHOPE Regional Development Programme and the network's expansion in parts of Latin America and the Asia Pacific Region.

It also features an expression of gratitude to the partners whose financial support enables INHOPE to keep fighting against the circulation of illegal content and CSAM, along with details regarding the organisation's governance and finance.

While these successes are celebrated by the network, they also highlight an increased need to tackle the spread of CSAM online. INHOPE hopes 2020 will be a year of equivalent progress towards achieving the goal of an internet free of CSAM.

You can read the full report (in English) on the INHOPE website.

*ICCAM is INHOPE's secure software solution to collect, exchange and categorise reports of child sexual abuse material. ICCAM is used by INHOPE hotlines in different jurisdictions (countries) and INTERPOL. The name ICCAM is derived from the phrase "I see child abuse material".

** AviaTor stands for Augmented Visual Intelligence and Targeted Online Research. The tool has been developed as a prioritisation tool for NCMEC (National Center for Missing and Exploited Children) reports to help law enforcement authorities to swiftly identify children in danger.

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