AFP warn of ‘catfishing’ as 800,000 sex offender accounts share child abuse images

Police are warning parents about “catfishing” as kids go back to school, with new figures showing more than 800,000 sex offender accounts on the dark web and encrypted apps sharing child abuse material since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Police are warning parents about “catfishing” as kids go back to school, with new figures showing more than 800,000 sex offender accounts on the dark web and encrypted apps sharing child abuse material since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Australian Federal Police said predators were creating online social media personas of children or celebrities in a bid to make it easier for them to contact children.

Predators were inventing new identities or assuming the identity of a child who already has a social media presence, using images and details they find online to make it more convincing.

Once they had built a rapport with children, online predators were grooming victims and coercing them into providing sexually explicit material.

Earlier this month a man pleaded guilty to 25 charges in the Melbourne County Court following an investigation by the AFP Victorian Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team, in which the man was found to have posed as a young teenager to gain the trust of victims in Australia and overseas.

He is due to be sentenced in February 2022.

In May 2020, a Sydney man was jailed after an AFP investigation found he targeted 48 children using this method, posing as a young girl to elicit images from children.

After a joint AFP investigation with the Western Australian Police Force, a man is facing 312 charges for similar alleged offences involving 285 alleged victims in Australia and other countries.

Police say predators are creating online social media personas of children or celebrities in a bid to make it easier for them to contact children. Mobile phone.

Tips for parents and carers include keeping your child’s personal information including full name and age private; ensuring backgrounds in photos don’t give away the location; avoid posting photos in school uniform; only share images of your children with people you trust; and consider having a closed group with approved members for community accounts.

Minister for Home Affairs Karen Andrews said cyber security and the protection of children online were among the highest priorities for the government.

The AFP will release more back-to-school safety tips this week.

“The government is serious about protecting children online – but we all have a role to play,” Ms Andrews said.

“The tips, warnings, and information the AFP is releasing this week are vitally important for parents, carers, teachers and others. Together, we can keep our children safe.”

The AFP-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) and ThinkUknow program will outline how to stay safe online and how to recognise predatory sexual and grooming behaviour.

AFP ACCCE and human exploitation Commander Hilda Sirec said she encouraged parents and carers to educate their children about the dangers of sharing personal details and private photos with people online.

“It’s perfectly natural for kids and young teens to wish to interact with people their own age online, but predators prey upon this to gain access to children, and can pose as children themselves,” Commander Sirec said.

“With the start of the school year many students will be connecting with each other on social media for the first time, making it a good time to remind kids to ensure they know who they are adding online and for parents or guardians to talk with their children about safe ways to use their devices.”