Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) is a type of child pornography that refers to images or videos depicting sexual exploitation and abuse of children shared online.
In the United States, federal law defines child pornography as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor less than 18 years old.
However, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) chooses to define material shared online as CSAM.
CSAM not only documents a victim’s trauma, but re-victimizes them every time the content is shared.
Child Sexual Abuse Materials and Social Media: A Glaring Issue
Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) is unfortunately finding a home on some of the most popular social media sites.
Facebook and Instagram, in particular, are a few of the main platforms that predators use to distribute and share this content.
Facebook (Meta) has acknowledged the issue with CSAM on their platforms, publishing a research study that analyzes CSAM offenders and their communities.
While the company has addressed the issue, they have done little to halt this illegal activity.
While the crimes committed by users, in terms of sharing and distributing CSAM, can face justice in a criminal court, legal action against these social media companies is being considered for harboring the content and doing little to halt the illegal activity on their platforms.
CSAM distribution is a heinous crime, and social media companies cannot continue to sweep this issue under the rug.
It’s time for them to be held accountable.