NECMEC highlights 7 million drop in child exploitation reports during congressional hearing

The U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary convened on March 11, 2025, to discuss the pressing need for the STOP CSAM Act, focusing on the alarming decline in reports of child sexual exploitation. The meeting highlighted significant statistics and concerns regarding the effectiveness of current reporting mechanisms.

During the session, it was revealed that in 2023, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received 36.2 million reports, a notable increase from 20.5 million the previous year. However, adjustments for a new feature allowing tech platforms to bundle related reports indicated that the actual number of incidents reported was 29.2 million, reflecting a concerning decrease of 7 million reports compared to the prior year.

Three primary factors contributing to this decline were identified. First, NCMEC collaborated with Meta to remove certain images from their hash bank that did not meet the criteria for child sexual abuse material, potentially accounting for a decrease of up to 200,000 reports. Second, several major online platforms, including Google and Microsoft, reported at least 20% fewer incidents than in previous years for unknown reasons. Lastly, the full implementation of end-to-end encryption on Facebook Messenger was believed to have significantly impacted reporting numbers.

The committee expressed deep concern over the decline in reports, especially in light of the recent passage of the report act, which mandated platforms to report child trafficking and online enticement for the first time. NCMEC emphasized the need for legislative improvements through the STOP CSAM Act, which aims to enhance the quality and consistency of reports submitted by online platforms. Key provisions proposed include requiring platforms to report imminent child exploitation crimes, issuing annual transparency reports on child protection efforts, and establishing a program to assist survivors in removing their images from online platforms.

The meeting concluded with a call to action for the committee to ensure the passage of the STOP CSAM Act, reinforcing the belief that every child deserves a safe childhood. The urgency of these discussions underscores the critical need for effective measures to combat child exploitation online.