Nine years ago, the Canadian police unit fighting child prostitution on the net was in despair. The task before them was Mission Impossible. Abusers and users all over the globe, were using servers and personal computers to distribute millions of porno pictures depicting 5-14 years old children in comprising positions. Many offer sales of videos involving adults and kids performing sex. Too often, children, themselves, were on offer.
The problems facing the police uni include weak laws, unfocused law agencies, non-existent cooperation between them, and no way to control and co-ordinate efforts globally.
In a moment of desperation, Paul Gillespie, the head of the unit, fired an email to Microsoft Chairman, Bill Gates, briefing him on the situation and asking for help. He never imagined the response. It was quick, strong and effective. Mr. Gates sent him an email the next day telling him that Microsoft will take care of the whole project, free of charge. The company's Canadian Manager called the same day to set up a meeting. His orders were simple: Whatever they need .. and more!
Nine years later, Mr Gillespie tells me, the project is global. Microsoft has connected participating police departments around the world with one network, one database. Investigators anywhere can tap into the system to find offenders, and co-ordinate with each other, and world police, the Interpool, to catch and perscute child abusers.
Intelligent software store investigation results, emails addresses, chat histories, pictures and data of suspects and victims. It allows police officers to coordinate their efforts to find and exchange offenders' personal info, movements, tactics, and whereabouts. The case could be investigated at the same time in canada, UK, Australia and South Africa by universally trained officers following unified standards and working on the same online file.
To imagine the massive amount of stress on investigators, some facts and numbers may help. In the US alone, 24 million pictures and 78 000 videos of sex abuse of children of an average age of 5 years old were found. Each picture and video needed to be analysed and connected to similar ones, in order to identify the source, explains Paul Gillespie, now CEO of Kid Internet Safety Alliance. (KINSA.net is a Non Governmental Organization that trains police officers world-wide at FBI standards of investigation).
More investigation work is needed to reach the offender and prove his guilt. For example, it was found that millions of pictures came originally from the same server of a Houston collector/seller. He traded images around the globe, using a cophisticated network.
Investigators look first for the abused children. To find the abusers, they analyse pic by pic, and look for marks, such as unique backgrounds, tattoos or watches. Since most cases involves a male in kids' lives, detectives look for relatives, neighbours and friends who carry these identifications.
To their shock, they found that many of these children, boys and girls, were abused by their own father, for fun and/or for trade. Too often, children themselves were offered for rent, exchange or sale.
To find the offenders is one thing, to take care of the vicitims is another. The problem is that laws and medical services are weak in most countries. After few months or years in prison, offenders are out looking for more fun. Children are poorly protected and taken care of. Many return voluntarily to the same trade.
So far, it is believed, there are from 3 to 5 millions original picutres involving 100,000 to 150,000 children. However only 3000 kids were identified.
"After we find out who and where, we contact the police in offenders' country of residence or visiting. We, then, go and arrest offenders, remove the abused from their custody, then treat and provide shelter and help for them. Some cases defy normal treatment. In poor countries, this could be quite a challenge. Even in rich countries like Canada, providing enough care and followup is not a priority for government agencies," says Mr. Gillespie.
"The same can be said about offenders. While some may need psychological help, most have genetical problems. No government is ready to continue treatment of offenders and observe them after they leave jail. We have to check on them ourselves. only this time it is more difficult, because they get smarter and harder to catch!," he explains.
The fight continues, and Mr. Gillespie and company with the help and support of good guys-law agencies, companies and donors-are doing their best to achieve the possible in the impossible mission. They need our support and prayers. Only of we have more of Bill Gates among us, the world would be much better place.
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