Published: Fri 2 Oct 2015
Dora, IWF Senior Internet Content Analyst
On Wednesday (23 September) myself and the IWF team welcomed Rosalba Ceravolo from Telefono Azzurro into our office to better understand how our two hotlines tackle child sexual abuse online content.
Earlier this year (June 2015) I was selected to visit the internet hotline in Bulgaria as part of the International Association of Internet Hotlines (INHOPE) bursary programme. The programme aims to connect hotline teams around the world for sharing information in, policies, procedures and best practice to eliminate online child sexual abuse content.
Like me, Rosalba submitted her application to INHOPE explaining why she wanted to visit the IWF and how the bursary funding would benefit her and her colleagues at Telefono Azzurro. Although the Italian Hotline provides a different range of services to the IWF, Rosalba explained that the IWF’s model was one they were keen to adopt. She told me that our ability to proactively seek out illegal online content was especially interesting to her, as we are the only hotline in the world with the permission to do this.
Telefono Azzurro offer a 24-hour helpline service for children suffering abuse or seeking advice, a hotline for reporting online child sexual abuse content and an awareness centre delivering consultations, workshops, campaigns and education within schools. Currently the Italian Hotline is not able to view illegal content which is reported to them, instead the content is passed onto law enforcement where content is assessed. For this reason, Rosalba was keen to understand the IWF’s governance and how the IWF recruits and trains its analysts.
I’ve gained a lot from visiting the Bulgarian Hotline and welcoming Rosalba into the IWF, and would like to thank INHOPE for funding such a valuable programme.
Blog by Dora, IWF Senior Internet Content Analyst
We would not expect children to protect themselves from sexual abuse in schools, clubs or youth organisations so why would we adopt such an approach online?
Public debate around online child sexual abuse material detection is dominated by myths, misunderstandings, and hypotheticals. The truth is that detection technology is built on established safety and security tools that have been embedded across the digital ecosystem for decades.
