Huw Edwards’ offences highlight how WhatsApp can be abused by predators sharing criminal imagery of children, IWF warns

Published:  Fri 20 Sep 2024

Dan Sexton, Chief Technology Officer at the IWF, appeared on national BBC Breakfast television this week (September 17) to warn Meta is not taking adequate steps to proactively prevent the sharing of child sexual abuse material on the platform.

It came as disgraced BBC news presenter Huw Edwards was handed a six-month prison sentence, suspended for two years after he admitted receiving some of the most extreme (Category A) child sexual abuse imagery from a convicted paedophile via WhatsApp.

Mr Sexton said: “What are they doing to make their platform safe and prevent this from happening to other children in the future?”.

Watch the BBC video clip here: 

Clip provided by BBC.

Tags

IWF and child protection partners stand up for the rights of child sexual abuse victims and survivors at Brussels stunt

IWF and child protection partners stand up for the rights of child sexual abuse victims and survivors at Brussels stunt

Coalition urges EU leaders to pass vital child sexual abuse laws

13 October 2025 News
Europe in ‘last chance saloon’ as new paper shows child sexual abuse can be blocked before being shared in E2EE services

Europe in ‘last chance saloon’ as new paper shows child sexual abuse can be blocked before being shared in E2EE services

IWF paper sets out how end-to-end encrypted messaging can be protected from child sexual abuse without breaking encryption.

9 October 2025 News
Vital partnership enhances ThreatLocker ability to tackle child sexual abuse imagery

Vital partnership enhances ThreatLocker ability to tackle child sexual abuse imagery

As a new Member of the Internet Watch Foundation, Threatlocker reinforces its mission to disrupt cybercrime and support child protection online.

30 September 2025 News