ReDirection: Findings from Italian Respondents to Surveys of CSAM Offenders on the Dark Web

REPORT

The innovative research, conducted by Protect Children, gathered responses from over 54,000 anonymous child sexual abuse material (CSAM) offenders in the dark web in 21 languages, including over 966 Italian-language participants. The collaboration between Protect Children and the Joint Research Centre, with its expertise in the field, has led to an unprecedented research on CSAM offenders.

These results show that Italian-speaking individuals when they first viewed CSAM were younger on average than their international counterparts, even though a significant portion of our sample stated they first encountered CSAM accidentally.

Italian-speaking respondents, compared to the international average, are more likely to contact a child online after viewing CSAM and view livestreamed CSAM and violent content.

Nonetheless, the Italian-speaking respondents reported that they have attempted to stop searching and accessing CSAM and they are motivated to receive help in this endeavour.

These results highlight the urgent need to implement effective child protection mechanisms and programs aimed at enhancing children's safety skills. Additionally, there is a critical need for comprehensive offender-focused prevention programs designed for individuals seeking help online to manage their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours.

Read the report

Citation

OVASKA, A., INSOLL, T., SOLOVEVA, V., VAARANEN-VALKONEN, N. and DI GIOIA, R., Findings from Italian language respondents to Re-Direction surveys of CSAM users on dark web search engine - Risultati provenienti da risposte in lingua italiana ai questionari Re-Direction da parte di autori di CSAM nel darkweb., Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 2025, https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2760/9816872, JRC138231.