According to the organization, its online CP reporting hotline fields thousands of reports each month from web surfers who encounter illegal images of child sexual abuse and exploitation on the Internet. The Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection investigates these reports to determine the hosting, billing, IP address, ownership, and linkage of suspected CP sites. Red Flag reports are then forwarded to domestic and international agencies, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), and law enforcement (FBI, Homeland Security, etc).
In addition to helping to stop this horrific crime, the data from the hotline proves that the industry is not involved in child pornography; with the majority of commercial CP being distributed by organized crime in the Eastern European Bloc countries and Japan.
Because of ASACP's effort, these criminals have moved away from misusing the adult industry to other ecommerce industries. Unfortunately, most of the CP on the Internet is distributed by pedophiles in underground chat rooms and via Usenet, where it is more difficult for law enforcement to apprehend these criminals.
"It's hard to believe the ASACP hotline has processed half a million reports in the past six and a half years," Tim Henning, ASACP's technology and forensic research director, said. "It has been both a challenging and rewarding time for me. The contributions this information has and continues to make in protecting children are incalculable."
While the ASACP hotline was founded in 1996, the current tracking method only goes back to 2003 when the system was upgraded.
"I want to thank all of our members and sponsors whose contributions have made this possible," Henning added. "You should be very proud of this accomplishment."
Founded in 1996, ASACP is a nonprofit organization dedicated to online child protection, through its CP Reporting Hotline and Restricted To Adults (RTA) website label.