Protecting Our Children Through Technology

Jim Gamble of the UK’s National Crime Squad unites countries around the world to keep children safe online

Nearly half of 9-19 year-olds who use the internet have given out personal information to strangers they've met online, according to the London School of Economics (LSE) in the UK. Further, LSE’s Professor Sonia Livingstone found that one third of 9-19-year-old daily and weekly internet users have received unwanted sexual or nasty comments online or by text message, though only 7 percent of parents are aware.

Without being able to verify who they’re talking to, children can be vulnerable when communicating via the internet.

Tackling Internet Child Abuse

Jim Gamble is the Deputy Director General of the UK’s National Crime Squad and is the senior police officer responsible for tackling online child abuse. He is also the Chief Executive designate of the new Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre.

“The best way to tackle crime is to prevent it and we needed to change the behaviour of online offenders,” says Jim. “Geographic boundaries are not an issue for paedophiles so the time had come for a more proactive, coordinated global response.”

In 2003, the Virtual Global Taskforce (VGT) was established, bringing together Jim, law enforcement agencies and corporate partners including Microsoft. The founding law-enforcement members of the Taskforce are the National Crime Squad, the Australian High Tech Crime Centre, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the US Department of Homeland Security and Interpol. The award-winning VGT’s mission is to prevent child abuse and deter child-abusers by using the very same medium on which they operate: the internet.

Turning the Situation Around

To combat this, the VGT’s initiatives include setting up websites to deter offenders from searching the internet for images of child abuse.

In January 2004, Jim kicked off Operation Pin in the UK, USA, Canada and Australia. It centres on an internet site purporting to contain child-abuse images.

However, after clicking through the first few screens, users are informed their details have been captured and logged by law-enforcers and will receive follow-ups from local police.

“It works in a similar way to how drivers slow down for speed cameras,” says Jim. “Once potential child abusers learn they are being watched, they become deterred.”

Reaching Out to Victims… and Abusers

The paedophile community becomes savvy to the VGT’s tactics so they change regularly. And the internet is the easy, low-cost way to do this.

In addition, the VGT launched its website www.virtualglobaltaskforce.com, which offers advice, information and support. It includes an easy-to-use section for children, parents and other concerned people to report instances of real or suspected child abuse.

The site has had 14 million hits in its first eight months.

The VGT’s next step is to provide a global internet patrol and use its bases around the world to ensure someone is on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. .

24-7 Global Monitoring

“The VGT’s new facility will be the global headquarters of the fight against online child abuse,” says Jim. “The internet is not just a means for child-abusers to commit crimes; it is a great tool for the police in stopping these crimes in the first place.”