The National Bureau of Investigation on Sunday urged the telecommunications companies to ramp up online security and block all websites facilitating the online sexual exploitation of children.
The NBI said that, since the pandemic, students and minors had been engaged in online exploitation even via some social media sites to sustain e-learning.
In a report on ABS-CBN News, NBI Cybercrime Chief Vic Lorenzo said efforts had been relentless against consolidators, sexual predators, peddlers of sexualized and explicit photos and videos of children.
“Recently, during our last operation, we found out that there is someone who is consolidating these photos, the student does not directly engage with sexual predators, and the consolidator facilitates, sells and pays the student.,” Lorenzo said.
In February 2020, at least 600,000 obscene photos and videos of Filipino children were shared and sold online, according to a report from the Child Rights Network.
Lorenzo admits that law enforcers face limitations, especially when it comes to data privacy, but telecommunications companies and internet providers have a better chance to monitor all internet data.
“It’s challenging because the internet is vast but doable, because of the presence of artificial intelligence today,” he said.
As home schooling and exposure to the internet among children has increased during the pandemic, Lorenzo urged parents to monitor the daily activities of the child and limit access to websites.
“Cyber security begins at home, and the parents should know the telltale signs. When the child is engaged in online sexual exploitation, we encourage them to coordinate with us,” he said.