NEWS RELEASE  

January 31, 2024

RAINN Statement as Senators Are Expected to Grill Big Tech CEOs on Online Child Sexual Exploitation

Washington, D.C. (January 31, 2024)—Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee is hearing testimony by CEOs from Meta, TikTok, X, Discord, and Snap on the proliferation of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on their respective platforms.

The distribution and presence of CSAM on social media platforms amounts to an avalanche of abuse. In 2022, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received over 32 million CyberTipline reports for CSAM containing more than 88 million images, videos, and other content related to suspected child sexual exploitation. This is the largest number of reports ever received in one year, and is a 15.1 million-increase from 2019.

“We have been here before and still the proliferation of child sexual abuse material far outpaces any measures put in place,” says Scott Berkowitz, president of RAINN. “The senators and CEOs we will hear from today are the ultimate ‘social media influencers’ who can end this scourge. As such, we will be expecting them to use their powerful influence to protect children and pursue perpetrators of CSAM.”

The “Big Tech and the Online Child Sexual Exploitation Crisis” hearing is expected to probe the steps technology companies are — and are not — taking to prevent and remove child sexual abuse materials from their platforms and assist law enforcement’s efforts to pursue perpetrators.

RAINN will be joined at the hearing by survivors who have submitted written testimony. RAINN is advocating for legislation that would incentivize the largest tech companies to undertake measures to identify and stop these crimes on their platforms, including the EARN IT Act, the Project Safe Childhood Act, the SHIELD Act, the REPORT Act, the Kids Online Safety Act, and the STOP CSAM Act.

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About RAINN

RAINN, the nation's largest anti-sexual violence organization, created and operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline. RAINN also carries out programs to prevent sexual violence, help survivors, help organizations improve their sexual assault prevention and response programs, and ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice.

If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, free, confidential help is available 24/7 by calling 800.656.HOPE (4673) or visiting online.RAINN.org.