February is dedicated worldwide to the online safety of children and young people. In this context, the International Center "La Strada" is launching the campaign "Let’s Talk About MASC", aiming to combat stereotypes related to materials depicting sexual abuse against children, IPN reports.
"We aim to talk about abusive representation materials involving children - an insufficiently addressed topic. In 2024, the number of such materials increased sixfold compared to 2023, placing Moldova 15th worldwide in this regard," said Elena Botezatu, Executive Director of the International Center "La Strada".
In the first 11 months of 2024, the online reporting platform sguronline.md recorded 11,894 reports of illegal materials, almost double the number from the previous year. Additionally, 59% of the reported materials contain extremely severe content, involving children under 13 years old.
The General Police Inspectorate confirms the negative trend, reporting 122 criminal cases in 2024 related to child sexual offenses committed through information technologies, compared to 72 cases in 2023.
To raise awareness about the MASC phenomenon, the International Center "La Strada" has prepared five vox populi-style videos, clearly explaining what such materials are, why they are illegal, and how they can be reported. According to the organization, this initiative aims to debunk myths about viewing, sharing, and possessing child sexual abuse content, promoting civic responsibility in combating this issue.
The International Center "La Strada" emphasizes that anyone can help protect children online by anonymously and confidentially reporting child sexual abuse materials on the platform www.siguronline.md.
