Thread by @CollectiveShout

Children offered game currency, cash, food deliveries and vouchers for naked images in disturbing new tactic, police warn

skynews.com.au/business/tech-…

"Disturbingly, we also know offender networks routinely trade information about particular users of social media who are susceptible to incentives or coercion, which will lead to repeated contact requests from other predators." - Australian Federal Police Commander Hilda Sirec

In a recent submission we made to eSafety, we called for explicit minimum industry standards for CSEM-related matters, including prohibiting promo of purchasable content featuring children.

In our 2 year investigation into predatory activity on Instagram we've documented sexualised content feat minors promo'd via websites,
subscription-based content sharing platforms, direct payment services (eg PayPal, CashApp) + in exchange for gift cards, Amazon wish list items.

From our blog: 'Now that Instagram has legions of predatory men creeping over young girls, numerous parents and other adults are exploiting children to commercialise underage masturbation fodder.

'They set up subscription-based websites and accounts on content-sharing platforms like Patreon and Boosty to sell images of underage girls wearing bikinis, cosplay costumes, g-strings and lingerie.

'Website hosts, photographers, model ‘scouts’, brands and parents are all in on the act. Instead of protecting these girls, adults are exploiting them, grooming them to use their bodies as sexual objects, and profiting.

'Instagram aids the trade in monetised sexualised imagery of underage girls by allowing users to advertise and provide links to purchasable content.

'The girls’ personal Instagram accounts, and so-called ‘fan’ & ‘shout out’ pages, serve as sneak-peeks of the content predators can access if they pay for it. Some accounts offer content directly through Instagram in exchange for Paypal or Cash App payments, or Amazon gift cards.

'There is no doubt that this is child exploitation. These girls aren't old enough to consent to or understand the consequences of taking part in bikini ‘modelling’ or cosplay photo shoots.

'What will happen when they grow up and learn that the ‘modelling’ photos taken in their childhood were sold and distributed to men to masturbate to? That the adults who were supposed to protect them in their childhood exploited them and profited?

'Despite all this, Instagram has repeatedly refused to remove pages which promote the sale of sexualised images of children.'

Read more: collectiveshout.org/mainstreaming_…