20/08/2026
🚨 INTERPOL has seen a significant increase in the number of identified victims of child sexual exploitation in recent years.
In the first seven months of 2026, nearly 5,800 new victims have been identified through INTERPOL's International Child Sexual Exploitation (ICSE) database.
In 2025, we saw the largest annual increase in identifications since ICSE’s creation in 2011.
This increase reflects global efforts to combat child sexual exploitation, including:
🔵 The creation of dedicated national victim identification units
🔵 Expanded victim identification task forces
🔵 Stronger cross-border coordination
But these efforts tell only part of the story.
The rise in victim identifications is also linked to a growing number of cases involving children who are coerced, manipulated or sextorted into producing self-generated abuse material. These cases often generate large volumes of media per victim, increasing the likelihood of detection.
INTERPOL's Crimes Against Children unit works to:
🔵 Locate and safeguard child victims
🔵 Block access to child sexual abuse material
🔵 Identify offenders
