IWF CEO Kerry Smith welcomes TikTok’s decision to prioritise child protection over end‑to‑end encryption.
On 3 April, essential child protection systems used by technology companies to detect and remove online child sexual abuse material will become illegal to operate in the EU unless the European Parliament votes to extend the current legal framework. A temporary law allowing voluntary detection is expiring, and political deadlock has stalled a permanent solution. This will create a dangerous legal vacuum that perpetrators are aware of and poised to exploit. Proven tools like hash‑matching - which do not compromise privacy - would be forced offline, enabling millions of known abusive images to resurface. Research shows these systems deter offenders and make access harder; disabling them will reverse this progress. MEPs have one final chance to act by voting for an amendment that preserves protections for children across Europe.
The IWF warns that the EU’s failure to extend the temporary derogation will force platforms to halt proactive detection of child sexual abuse, putting children at serious risk.
The IWF Reporting Portal in Tunisia shows the importance of working with multiple partners to efficiently fight against child sexual abuse material.
The Morocco Reporting Portal launched on Safer Internet Day 2021 (9 February), celebrating the international efforts and best practice to make the internet safer for all, and especially for children.
We've partnered with CHI to build capacity amongst international helpline staff to deal with online child sexual exploitation and abuse.
The National Crime Agency estimates there to be between 550,000 and 850,000 people in the UK who pose varying forms of sexual risk to children.
The Queen used her speech at the state opening of Parliament to reaffirm the Government's commitment to develop legislation to make the internet safer for children and "vulnerable" users.
The UK’s Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) and the USA’s National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) announce a landmark agreement to better protect children whose sexual abuse images are shared and traded on the internet.