From 5 to 6 June 2024, the CyberSEE project and CYBERKOP Action of the Octopus Project facilitated the participation of representatives from the criminal justice authorities of South-East Europe in the EUROPOL AP Twins Annual Expert Meeting on Protecting Children Against Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, held in The Hague, Netherlands. The meeting gathered over 120 experts, practitioners and stakeholders from law enforcement agencies around the world, as well as organisations such as the European Commission, Child Rescue Coalition, INTERPOL, INHOPE, UNICRI, NCMEC and projects like CYCLOPES and RAYUELA, to exchange knowledge and insights on combating the exploitation and abuse of children.
The event covered a range of topics, including the impact of artificial intelligence and virtual reality on child protection. It provided a chance to discuss safeguarding children both online and offline, and to explore innovative solutions to overcome these issues. At the same time, the meeting facilitated sharing of insights on preventive measures, legal frameworks and strategic approaches for law enforcement and judicial authorities, being a platform for networking, collaboration and learning.
The participants gained additional knowledge and skills on challenges and advancements posed by AI, targeting global offenders, conducting investigations, processing massive amounts of data from NCMEC workflows - 32 million referrals and 100 million files in 2023 - investigating encrypted communications and cryptocurrencies.
On this occasion a side meeting with the delegates from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Kosovo* was held to discuss existing capacities, competencies, priorities, tools, trends and challenges, as well as the needs and potential support of the CyberSEE project for combating online child abuse.
The CyberSEE project remains committed to fostering international cooperation and facilitating participation in global activities to enable information sharing between criminal justice authorities, child protection services and hotlines, ensuring that competent institutions are equipped with the knowledge, skills and have access to specialised tools necessary for investigating online child sexual exploitation and abuse (OCSEA) and related electronic evidence.
*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence.
Cybercrime Programme Office (C-PROC)