Predators 101:

An Introduction

When children go online, they have direct and immediate access to friends, family, and complete strangers, which can put unsuspecting children at great risk. Children who meet and communicate with strangers online are easy prey for Internet predators. Predators have easy and anonymous access to children online where they can conceal their identity and roam without limit. Often, we have an image of sexual predators lurking around school playgrounds or hiding behind bushes scoping out their potential victims, but the reality is that today’s sexual predators search for victims while hiding behind a computer screen, taking advantage of the anonymity the Internet offers.

Child Sexual Abuse: Putting the Problem in Context

• Research indicates that about 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 13 boys experience child sexual abuse at some point in childhood.  91% of child sexual abuse is perpetrated by someone the child or child’s family knows.  (Center for Disease Control, accessed 2-18-21)

In the Internet age, offline sex abuse is fueled by pedophiles' unprecedented access to child pornography and exacerbated as perpetrators post pictures online of their exploits:

In 2018, tech companies reported over 45 million online photos and videos of children being sexually abused — more than double what they found the previous year.

• In 1998, there were over 3,000 reports of child sexual abuse imagery.
• Just over a decade later, yearly reports soared past 100,000.
• In 2014, that number surpassed 1 million for the first time.
• In 2018, there were 18.4 million, more than one-third of the total ever reported.
• Despite landmark legislation past in 2008 to reign in the scourge (which has gone largely underfunded) the explosion in detected content kept growing — exponentially. (New York Times, Sept. 30, 2019)

What is the Profile of a Predator?

What does an online predator"look like"? The online predator:

1. Blends into society
2. Is typically clean cut and outwardly law abiding
3. Is usually white, middle-aged or younger, and male
4. Uses position in society to throw off suspicion
5. Can rise to be a pillar of society while actively pursuing children
6. Often engages in activities involving children
7. Appears trusting to both parents and child

What Fuels Online Predators?

• Easy and anonymous access to children 
• Risky online behavior 
• Virtual validation (communication with other pedophiles via chat rooms, etc.)
• Law enforcement challenges
• Easy access to “a la carte” child pornography

A Predator's Confession