It is difficult for us to perceive that sexual assault can occur when there is no encounter between the perpetrator and the victim, but they occur daily, even inside your home – all through the Internet.
Everything you need to know about child sexual abuse online
Child sexual abuse is any exploitation of a child for the sexual purposes or sexual pleasure of a person who has a position of power or authority over the child. The prevailing perception among the majority of the public is that sexual assault occurs in some physical space, at school, on the street, in the child’s home, when there is physical contact between the perpetrator and the victim child.
With the welcoming of the Internet into our lives and our children’s lives, much of the sexual abuse of children has shifted from the physical space familiar to us all to cyberspace. Many sex offenders find the internet a natural and convenient area for action and seek children while in their homes, in a place that should be the safest and most protected of all.
How are sexual assaults done on the Internet?
Online sexual assault can manifest itself in two main ways:
The first type includes sexual assaults that occur in cyberspace. Such attacks can be manifested in the sending of provocative and sexual images or videos, in a discourse of sexual content and character, and in the performance of a sexual activity that webcams may document.
The children are seduced or forced to participate in such activities, send revealing pictures of themselves, participate in sexual activity via a video camera, or have conversations of a sexual nature online. In this type of injury, there is no physical contact between the abuser and the injured child. It is still a serious injury that has serious consequences for the safety of the children.
The second type of vulnerability refers to sexual assaults that occur in the physical space but that find their way into the Internet. For example, when the offender uploads videos or photos documenting the injury. This type also refers to sexual assaults that began in contact via the Internet and moved into the physical space. In these cases, the attacker uses the internet as an effective way to contact the child and then transfers the harm to the actual arena.
What is the Cryptocurrency Exchange’s role in combatting online child abuse?
The Internet allows sex offenders anonymity and hides behind a false, virtual identity. This shroud of secrecy and anonymity makes it easier for attackers to dare and harm children.
It also allows for a payment system comfortably hidden in cryptocurrency to provide its services to these predators through the “Dark web”. So in recent years, extensive development has been achieved in security and accountability when dealing with Cryptocurrency.
Firstly, the anonymity of the individual, a key factor of the Cryptocurrency sphere, remains. However, the path which the coin takes is much less secret. That is where KYT (Know Your Transaction) tools play. Already a standard in any licensed exchange, the KYT tools reveal the coin’s path before it reaches the exchange. These tools can also reveal their path after leaving the exchange. The path shows the use, but it reveals so much more. For example, Cryptocurrency exchanges can know how much was spent on the “dark web” and what. They can see each and every wallet this coin has visited since its use in the “darknet” and every activity that every one of those wallets was used for, and so on. And very quickly, a web of information is formed. This intricate web of incriminating evidence can then be provided to the correct authorities for further investigation. It also helps the Cryptocurrency exchange protect itself from illegal perpetrators by denying them service and, more importantly, its customers from using “tainted” coins and, most importantly, the children. Because if you deny service, you limit the perpetrator’s access to Cryptocurrency exchange with FIAT currency. The range of payment options for illegal activities is reduced, and activity is reduced.
Recent studies have revealed that the amount of bitcoin sent (in USD) from the darknet to exchanges with verification requirements has dropped from $53m in Q1 2019 to $44m in Q1 2020. This is due to the increased KYC/AML requirements at these exchanges and the technological advancements in the field.
Secondly, The Cryptocurrency exchange serves as a gatekeeper to the realm of Cryptocurrency. This they do with what is commonly known as the “KYC” (Know Your Client) procedure. The objective of the KYC process is to prevent Cryptocurrency exchanges from being used, by criminal elements, for things like money laundering and other illegal activities, among them child pornography and slavery. It also enables the exchange to understand its customers and their financial dealings to serve them better and manage its risks prudently. This is done by collecting and verifying the identity of the individual or corporate client wishing to exchange FIAT currency with Cryptocurrency. Their identity is checked on many internationally accessible offenders and illegal interaction databases. The customer’s nationality, residence, criminal or political history and affiliation are revealed to the exchange’s KYC/AML department with the ease one would expect in our day and age.
By denying service to criminal elements, the exchanges limit their access to and use of cryptocurrency. It also makes it easier for law enforcement to monitor and apprehend criminals trying to hide on the World Wide Web.
Lastly, it is to send a clear message that Bitnomics will not be complacent in any active use of Cryptocurrency in the abuse of the innocent and the young. We will not facilitate nor tolerate any such action to harm or facilitate harming children. And we will take every action allowed to us by law to cooperate with authorities when called upon.
