A record number of reports of suspected online child enticement were made to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in 2020.
Online child enticement is communication with a child via the Internet with the intent to commit a sexual offense or abduction, according to the non-profit.
This was a 28 percent increase in reports compared to the 16.9 million reports received in 2019.
One of the prominent reasons behind this increase has been the social changes resulting from the CCP virus pandemic, which has seen children spending more time online for virtual learning and socializing through social media and online games due to local restrictions.
“Online enticement can happen to any child using the internet,” executive director of NCMEC’s Exploited Children Division, Lindsey Olson, said.
“Offenders are very effective at grooming children, gaining their trust, isolating them from their parents and then exploiting them. Parents often think that it would ‘never’ happen to their child, but we know that is simply not true.
“We take all reports of online enticement very seriously,” she said.
Susan Kennedy, prevention program manager at NCMEC, says that parents need to be intelligently involved in their children’s online activities.
“The best thing you can do to protect your child online is to be involved in their online life,” she said in a statement. “Ask about what they are doing online and take a genuine interest. Provide guidance but try not to be overly punitive or judgmental.
“Offenders are able to take advantage of children when their activities are secret. This happens often when children are not comfortable or even afraid to go to adults in their lives when something is happening online, especially when they feel that they have done things they regret or know they shouldn’t have done.”
Of all the online enticement victim reports, girls constituted 78 percent, boys 13 percent, and the rest had an unidentified gender.
A majority of the children—99 percent—didn’t know the offender in person.
