Record number of UK under 18s facing ‘sextortion’ online as experts say no time to lose on nudity blockers for teens’ phones
Child protection groups brace for record numbers as half-year ‘sextortion’ reports have already eclipsed 2025 total.
Published: Fri 18 May 2018
The Internet Watch Foundation’s Hotline team has been nominated as a finalist in the Comms Business Awards.
The IWF (Internet Watch Foundation) was selected for the Hidden Heroes Award, for its Analysts’ unwavering commitment to removing child sexual abuse imagery from the internet.
The award recognises people and companies who have given and continue to give their time to helping good causes, while the Business Comms Awards as a whole recognises excellence in the ICT industry.
The IWF is one of five finalists, with the winner being revealed on Thursday 21st June 2018 at the The Royal Lancaster London Hotel by the comedian and Peep Show writer and actor David Mitchell, who will be hosting the event.
Susie Hargreaves OBE, IWF CEO, said: “We are honoured to have been shortlisted for the Hidden Heroes Award. The nature of the work our Hotline Analysts do truly makes them heroes. They are dedicated to removing child sexual abuse images and videos from the internet which is a tough job.
“Every day they save the child victims of abuse from the trauma of having the images of their abuse shared again and again. Sometimes their work can even lead to the safeguarding a child from a dangerous or abusive situation.
“We want to thank the Comms Business Awards for making the IWF a finalist.”
Read more about the Comms Business Awards at https://commsbusinessawards.co.uk
Child protection groups brace for record numbers as half-year ‘sextortion’ reports have already eclipsed 2025 total.
New data shows a concerning rise in the number of AI-generated child sexual abuse images identified in the first half of this year, with girls featuring most often.
As EU negotiations on the Child Sexual Abuse Regulation resume in Brussels, the Internet Watch Foundation places a choice before the public and policymakers – to either push for legislation that protects children online or make it easier for child sexual abuse content to spread.