Internet Crimes Against Children
In 2010, the Oxnard Police Department joined the Los Angeles Regional Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force to combat the increased internet usage for the sexual exploitation of children in Oxnard.
The Oxnard Police Department is an active member of the LA ICAC Task Force and the Ventura County ICAC Task Force. Four detectives are assigned members of LA ICAC, responsible for investigating the cyber-tips and criminal cases assigned to the Oxnard Police Department.
Children spend more time online as families rely on digital technology to learn, socialize, and stay connected with the outside world. With more children on the internet and unsupervised by working parents, internet safety for children is the number one priority for OPD investigators. This year, the assigned ICAC detectives took the opportunity to educate our community members about “Internet Safety.”
FPU v2.m4vThe Oxnard Police Department would like to remind the public that possessing child pornography or Child Sexual Abuse Material is a felony and can be punishable with imprisonment in State Prison. In addition to being captured in images and videos, many children depicted are often the victims of sexual assault, exploitation, or human trafficking. The Oxnard Police Department is committed to protecting the safety of our youth, and the continuing investigation of these crimes against children will be vigorously investigated and prosecuted.
Child Sexual Abuse Material
United States federal law defines child pornography as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor (a person less than 18 years old). Outside of the legal system, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children chooses to refer to these images as Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) to most accurately reflect what is depicted – the sexual abuse and exploitation of children. Not only do these images and videos document victims’ exploitation and abuse, but when these files are shared across the internet, child victims suffer re-victimization each time the image of their sexual abuse is viewed.
It’s important to remember CSAM consists of much more than just images and video files. While CSAM is seen and transmitted on computers and through other technology, these images and videos depict actual crimes being committed against children. The human element, children at risk, must always be considered when talking about this offense that is based in a high-tech world.
The disturbing reality is that the internet platforms we use every day to connect with each other and share information, including social media, online gaming, and e-mail, are now being used to disseminate and collect CSAM. CSAM can be found in virtually any online realm.
Sextortion
Sextortion is a form of child sexual exploitation where children are threatened or blackmailed, most often with the possibility of sharing with the public a nude or sexual images of them, by a person who demands additional sexual content, sexual activity or money from the child. This crime may happen when a child has shared an image with someone they thought they knew or trusted, but in many cases they are targeted by an individual they met online who obtained a sexual image from the child through deceit, coercion, or some other method. In many cases, the blackmailers may have stolen or taken images of another person and they are communicating through a fake account. The blackmailer may have sent images as well.
Resources
With so many children across our nation home as a result of the recent COVID-19 incident, the Los Angeles Regional Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (LA Regional ICAC) would like to share some available resources to protect them against predators who will be on many of the same social platforms during this time. Most of these children will be safe and secure with their Families. However, others will not be so lucky. Parents, family, and friends, please schedule time in your day to:
🞏 Watch children’s behavior
🞏 Monitor Internet activities
🞏 Know who children are interacting with online
🞏 Establish parental Internet restrictions
Keep in mind there are several ways other than the family computer for children to access the Internet, such as smartphones, tablets, and gaming systems.
Below is the link to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children website, which has published several educational tools to help educate parents and children against child predators.
Go to the “Education” dropdown menu to access training videos regarding online enticement, smartphones, and social media.