Published on: 2026-09-03
Source: United Nations – United Nations –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
September 3, 2026 Human Rights
About 20 million children aged 12 to 17 — one in five children in 21 countries — have been victims of sexual exploitation in the digital space. This is stated in a report published on Thursday by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
More than 15 million children in this age group received unwanted sexual content, nine million were forced to engage in sexualized conversations or share intimate images against their will, and four million became victims of having their personal images distributed without consent.
UNICEF notes that the actual scale of the problem is likely significantly higher.
“The report reveals a painful reality,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “More than 20 million children in the countries participating in the study have encountered unwanted explicit sexual content or sexual exploitation online—often on digital platforms they use for studying, gaming, and socializing with friends.”
Crimes on social networks
Almost 60 percent of all documented cases of exploitation reported occurred on social networks, including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and WhatsApp. Another 14 percent took place in online games. Perpetrators often exploit features of these platforms to gain the trust of children. In Montenegro, more than 80 percent of registered cases were related to social networks.
Also read:
UNICEF: more and more children are becoming victims of sexual deepfakes
In 57 percent of cases across 21 countries, the perpetrators were people known to the children, including peers, friends, and family members. In 38 percent of cases, the offenders met minors via the internet.
Available data indicate that sexual exploitation is often facilitated by functions that allow offenders to conceal their identity.
Use increases the risk of suicide
During interviews with researchers, children who had experienced sexual exploitation talked about the consequences for their emotional state, sense of safety, and ability to trust others. They spoke about fear, shame, confusion, and isolation.
“I didn’t know how to react… I was a bit shocked,” said a young woman from the Dominican Republic. At 14, her personal images were distributed without her consent.
According to the analysis, children who encountered sexual exploitation in the digital space reported suicidal thoughts or behaviors and self-harm four times more often, and also experienced anxiety significantly more frequently.
In Pakistan, the risk of self-harm among children who had been exploited was more than seven times higher.
Children do not know where to turn for help
In more than 40 percent of cases, the victims never told anyone about what happened, and law enforcement received reports for less than one percent of incidents.
Most often, this was due to the fact that children did not know whom to tell about what had happened.
“These experiences cause deep emotional and psychological harm,” said the head of UNICEF. “Many children suffer in silence, not knowing where to turn for help. We cannot turn a blind eye to this.”
Call to action
“All of us, including governments and technology companies, must do more to protect children on the internet,” Russell emphasized.
The authors of the study called for additional measures to prevent sexual exploitation.
Experts must ensure that technology companies provide more reliable protection for children and improve complaint and abuse reporting mechanisms. Governments need to strengthen enforcement mechanisms and hold perpetrators accountable. Society as a whole must combat harmful gender norms that normalize the sexualization of girls and stigmatize survivors of sexual violence.
Please note; this information is raw content obtained directly from the information source. It is an accurate report of the claims made by the source and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.