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IWF global figures show online child sexual abuse imagery up by a third

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Press Release shared by Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police

Thursday, April 19, 2018 – New data shows 37% increase in child sexual abuse URLs

Figures released today (April 18, 2018) by the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), the charity that searches for and removes online child sexual abuse imagery, show that more of this disturbing material is being found than ever before.  

The data is published in the IWF’s Annual Report, which provides a yearly global measure of the number of online images and videos of children being sexually abused to government, the police and the internet industry. The eagerly awaited report also contains trends in how services are being abused by offenders to host this illegal material.

Turks and Caicosis member of the IWF global network of Reporting Portals.A Reporting Portal is a simple web-based,safe and anonymous way for citizens inTurks and Caicosto send suspected online reports of child sexual abuse material directly to the IWF expert Analysts. They assess the reports and if applicable, have the content removed. The Reporting Portal of Turks and Caicosis available here: https://report.iwf.org.uk/tc.

Key figures and trends in the Annual Report include:

·        Confirmed child sexual abuse URLs (2017) 78,589. This is up by 37% from 57,335 in 2016.

·        Severity up. Category A content, which includes the rape and sexual torture of children,is up by 5%, from 28% of all content to33%.

  • Disguised website abuse in unprecedented increase. The IWF sawa86% rise in use of disguised websites, from 1,572 in 2016 to 2,909 in 2017. This implicates increased intelligence among offenders, who may be going to new lengths to evade detection.
  • Global hosting of child sexual abuse images:
    • Europe worst offender for hosting.Europe now hosts 65% of all confirmed IWF child sexual abuse imagery.This is up from 60% last year. The Netherlands continues to be the worst country for hosting child sexual abuse material.
    • Asia: In 2017, 1,627webpages containing child sexual abuse imagery were hosted in Asia (2%).
    • Africa:In 2017, only 20 webpages containing child sexual abuse imagery were hosted in Africa (<1%).
    • South America: Only 10 webpages containing child sexual abuse imagerywere hosted in South America (<1%).
  • Website brands. The number of child sexual abuse website brands rose by 112%.
  • Websites and newsgroups.In total, 80,318 reports of confirmed child sexual abuse were processed by the IWF, up from 59,548 in 2016. This was a 35% increase.
  • New IWF Reporting Portals worldwide: In 2017 the IWF has launched Portals in three countries: Namibia, Tanzania andMozambique. The IWF has also been awarded a grant from the Fund to End Violence Against Children to launch 30 Reporting Portals in the world’s least developed counties in the next three years, being Tanzania the first Portalunder the grant.
  • 636 reports from Portals: The IWF received 636 reports from the global Portalsnetwork in 2017.
  • To read the IWF’s full 2017 Annual Report go to: iwf.org.uk

Susie Hargreaves OBE, IWF CEO, said:“Our Annual Report is used as a reference and information tool, to give an accurate global picture of online child sexual abuse imagery. I’m incredibly proud that our Hotline has been able to remove more web pages that contain disturbing images of children being abused, than ever before from the internet. We share our analysis of trends with our partners – in government, law enforcement and industry, so that together we can fight this horrific crime.”

Much of the analysis for the 2017 IWF Annual Report makes for uncomfortable reading, with the images and videos found having increased in their severity. The most serious Category A images, depicting rape and sexual torture, rose to 33% from 28%. Category B images rose from 19% to 21%.

Significantly, the IWF also saw an increase of 86% in disguised websites, from 1,572 websites in 2016, to 2,909 in 2017. These are websites where the child sexual abuse content is only revealed to someone who has followed a pre-set digital pathway.To anyone else, they will only show legal content. This finding indicates an increased intelligence among a select number of offenders, who are going to new lengths to evade detection.

Europe now accounts for 65% of all child sexual abuse imagery the IWF sees, up from 60% last year.It continues to be the worst continent for child sexual abuse material. The top hosting countries of child sexual abuse URLs are the Netherlands, USA, Canada, France and Russia. The Netherlands now hosts 36% of child sexual abuse content, down from 37% last year, while North America has decreased by more than 4% from 22% to 18%. Overall, 87% of all child sexual abuse URLs identified globally in 2017 were hosted in just these top five countries.

Susie Hargreaves OBE, IWF CEO, said: “We are now receiving more reports of child sexual abuse content than ever before. This year we’re seeing offenders getting smarter and finding new ways to abuse legitimate internet services.Our trends analysis tracks this development. It’s concerning that offenders appear to be increasingly using concealed digital pathways to prevent law enforcement and hotlines around the world detecting these criminal websites. We are making huge technological advances, which we’ll be announcing later in the year, but we also need to continue to work globally, in partnership, to fight this disturbing crime. This battle cannot be won in isolation.

“The child victims of sexual abuse online are revictimised again and again, every time their picture is shared. The experience they go through at such a young age is unimaginably horrific, and they frequently take this pain into adulthood with them. That’s why at the IWF we fight every day to make sure these images and videos are removed from the internet, so that victimsare no longer forced to live with the tormentof others seeing the images of their abuse online.

“While I’m so proud of our Hotline for the sheer number of child sexual abuse URLs they’re removing online, these figures show what a vast amount of content is out there.Sadly, this could just be the tip of the iceberg.”

Jenny Thornton, IWF International Development Manager, said: “There is a global disparity in the availability of mechanisms for tackling child sexual abuse imagery online. To address this unevenness, in a world where child sexual abuse imageryonline is a crime that disregards international borders, we are dedicated to equipping the least developed countries with a Reporting Portal. It’s important to do this now, before these countries are targeted because of their vulnerability.”

More top stats and trends from IWF’s 2017 Annual Report:

  • In 2017, IWF Analysts assessed a webpage every four minutes. Every 7 minutes, that webpage showed a child being sexually abused. In 2016, Analysts saw a child being sexually abused every 9 minutes.
  • In total, 80,318 reports of confirmed child sexual abuse were processed by the IWF, up from 59,548 in 2016. This was overall a 35% increase. This figure includes URLs and newsgroups.
  • In 2017, the IWF’s Analysts found 78,589 URLs containing child sexual abuse material, and 571 newsgroups – of which 43,767 individual posts were removed from public access.
  • Image hosting sites continue to be the most abused service at 69% of content.
  • More images featured children aged 0to 10 than last year, rising from 53% to 55%, with images featuring 11 to 15 year-olds dropping from 45% to 43%. Children aged two or under accounted for 2% of content. The last 2% were pages with links to child sexual abuse content.
  • Of the victims, 86% were girls, 7% were boys and 5% featured both genders.
  • A total of 77,082 unique URLs were included on the IWF’s URL list, a 44% increase on 53,552included in 2016.
  • With a 57% increase on last year, more domain names than ever before are being used to host images and videos of children being sexually abused. With 3,791 domains being found this year, compared to 2,416 in 2016, 1,991 in 2015 and 1,694 in 2014, there has been a rise of 124% in four years.
  • In 2017, the IWFtook action against 5,002 URLs on websites using new generic top-level domains (gTLDs). These URLs were located across 1,063 different domains and 50 different new gTLDs.In 2016, action was taken to remove 1,559 URLs from websites using new gTLDs.
  • During 2017, the IWF added 130,671 hashes to its Hash List. At the end of 2017, the list contained hashes relating to 295,389 individual images. Of these hashes, 76,459 relate to the worst forms of abuse – images of rape or sexual torture of children.
  • Each of the IWF’s 13 Analysts saw 10,889 child sexual abuse images when adding to the IWF’s Hash List, alongside reviewing public reports and actively searching for child sexual abuse images and videos.
  • Exactly 50% of the IWF’s reports were proactively sourced while the other 50% were sent in by the public.

Magnetic Media is a Telly Award winning multi-media company specializing in creating compelling and socially uplifting TV and Radio broadcast programming as a means for advertising and public relations exposure for its clients.

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DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM REGULATIONS INTRODUCES “RATE YOUR RIDE” SYSTEM FOR TOURISTS VISITING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS

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FROM THE MINISTRY OF TOURISM

 

Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands, 27th March, 2024 – Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands: The Department of Tourism Regulations is proud to unveil the “Rate Your Ride” system, a new initiative designed to enhance the vacation experience for tourists exploring our picturesque islands.

The “Rate Your Ride” system empowers tourists to provide valuable feedback on the quality of transportation services they receive while visiting the Turks and Caicos Islands. Through an easy-to-use online form, tourists can rate factors such as cleanliness, comfort, safety, and professionalism of drivers, helping us to assure the highest quality of service standards across all modes of transportation.

By participating in the “Rate Your Ride” system, tourists play a crucial role in shaping the future of transportation services in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Their feedback will enable us to identify areas for improvement and ensure that every visitor enjoys safe, comfortable, and convenient travel throughout their stay in the Turks and Caicos.

The code will also be publicly accessible through the cooperation of volunteer drivers who will make the rating code available in their vehicles. Flyers and stickers displaying the code will be distributed at hotels, resorts and airports. The mandated display of these codes is expected to align with the rollout of our tourism regulations in 2025.

For more information about the “Rate Your Ride” system and other initiatives by the Department of Tourism Regulations, please visit gov.tc/tourismregulations/or contact us via telephone at 946-4970 and email at tourismregulations@gov.tc.

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THE DEPARTMENT OF BEHAVIOURAL HEALTH SERVICES CONDEMNS RECORDING OF PERSONS WHO ARE IN CRISIS

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FROM THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

 

Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands, 27th March 2024– The Department of Behavioral Health Services is appealing to the general public to refrain from recording and circulating videos of persons who may appear to be experiencing a mental health crisis. Anyone can experience a mental health crisis at some point in their life. According to the World Health Organization, 1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem in any given year. Persons may struggle with very common conditions such as Anxiety and Depression or be diagnosed with more serious conditions like Bipolar Disorder or Psychosis.

“There are a lot of misunderstandings about various mental health conditions and how they may manifest. In addition, there are a number of negative perceptions and misconceptions that society exhibits towards people with mental health problems. However, just as we would show care and concern for someone diagnosed with Cancer, or any other physical illness, in the same way, we need to be as caring and helpful to persons with mental illnesses”– stated Director of the Department of Behavioral Health Services, Dr. Alicia Malcolm.

The Department is urging the public to call the following numbers if you see someone who appears to be experiencing a mental health crisis:

338-5473/338-3616: Providenciales, North or Middle Caicos

338-3614/338-3612: Grand Turk, South Caicos, Salt Cay

338-6301: Nights and Weekends

If someone is putting themselves or someone else in immediate, serious risk of harm, call 911.

The Department of Behavioral Health services is here to help and provides the following services which are free and confidential:

Location of above services:

o             Sam Harvey Building, Down Town, Providenciales,

o             Primary Health Care Department, Cheshire Hall Medical Center, Providenciales 

o             Department of Behavioural Health, Duncombe Alley, Grand Turk

 

Let’s all do our part in creating a community where people with mental health problems feel respected, supported and cared for. 

For additional information, please visit the Ministry of Health’s Facebook page on https://www.facebook.com/tciministryofhealth/ or the Department of Behavioral Health Services Faceebook on https://www.facebook.com/TCIDBHS/.

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Breaking Ground: TCI Could Lead in Regional Communication Standards

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Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom, 27th March 2024: The PR, marketing, and communications sector is poised for potential growth and could lead the Caribbean region in terms of industry standards says Damian Wilson. Wilson’s suggestion comes after the release of a new research report into the current trends and future direction of the sector as a possible emerging industry in the Turks & Caicos Islands (TCI).

Wilson is the report’s author, which conveys the findings of research which he initiated. “One of the key research results is the considerable optimism by industry practitioners and government alike, with persons seeing growth potential. I believe that we can become regional leaders in this field. I believe that one of the initiatives that could be used to do this is by establishing a ‘TCI Centre of Communications Excellence’ within the TCI Community College. Such an institute would be dedicated to communication and media innovation with a particular focus on digital communications and ICT,” says Wilson.

He further explained, “I believe that the PR, marketing, and communications sector, like much of the country, is at a crossroads and could have an even greater impact on our socio-economic fabric. Some may have concerns about our small size, but I believe this makes us far more agile than our neighbours. All in all, any potential growth must be underpinned by new investments, professional development, and a strategy to integrate the sector into the broader economy.”

Wilson also said that he sees his research as a first step in understanding our own industry sectors in the TCI and would love to see more profound research and analysis conducted. He’s hoping that the report will spark discussion along those lines. The report is entitled ‘Current Trends and Future Direction: A Preliminary Report on the PR, Marketing, and Communications Sector in the Turks & Caicos Islands’. Anyone wanting a copy of the report can contact Damian Wilson via his email, damian.wilson.pr@gmail.com.

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