PULSE POINTS:

What Happened: An extensive international child pornography network called “Kidflix” was uncovered and dismantled by Europol, which supported authorities from 38 countries in shutting it down.

Who’s Involved: Europol, Bavarian State Criminal Police Office, and law enforcement from 38 countries, including the U.S., Canada, and Australia, were involved. The operation led to 79 arrests so far, with additional suspects identified.

Where & When: The operation spanned approximately three years, with a key part being the shutdown of servers in Germany and the Netherlands.

Key Quote: Europol described the network as “one of the largest pedophile platforms in the world” with an estimated two million users.

Impact: The platform reportedly hosted over 91,000 child exploitation videos, with around three new videos uploaded hourly. The crackdown aims to tackle global child sexual exploitation severely, highlighting the issue’s widespread nature.

IN FULL:

An international crackdown led by Europol has successfully dismantled one of the world’s largest child pornography networks, named “Kidflix.” Authorities across 38 countries collaborated to take down the platform, which disseminated a staggering amount of heinous illegal content.

The investigation led by Germany’s Bavarian State Criminal Police lasted nearly three years and concluded with significant enforcement action. As of April 2, around 79 individuals have been taken into custody, while 1,400 others are under suspicion. According to Europol reports, the network had approximately two million users from 35 countries.

Servers hosting the Kidflix site were located in Germany and the Netherlands, and they were instrumental in enabling the illegal transaction of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Users of the platform could anonymously pay to access, stream, and even upload their own videos of abuse. Cryptocurrencies were utilized to avoid detection through financial transactions.

Kidflix shockingly archived more than 91,000 videos depicting child abuse. It also introduced new uploads at an alarming rate, averaging three new uploads every hour.

This successful takedown forms part of a larger effort to combat online child sexual exploitation by law enforcement agencies worldwide. Europol stated those apprehended are not only charged with watching or posting exploitative content but also suspected of directly abusing children.

CSAM distribution remains a significant problem on the regular Internet, often called the surface web, as well. Pornography websites like OnlyFans and Pornhub have been found to have hosted CSAM material in the past. Even mainstream social media websites like Instagram and Facebook have had millions of reports of CSAM being shared in recent years.

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