Welcome back to the Duke Tyner podcast, folks. I'm Summer, and todaywe're tackling a subject that's going to be hard to hear, but absolutelycritical that we discuss. If you're a parent, grandparent, teacher, or anyonewho cares about children, I need you to listen up. We're talking about onlinechild sexual exploitation – a crisis that's growing faster than most peoplerealize, and one that demands our immediate attention.
Before we dive in, I want to give you a heads up – this episode dealswith child safety and exploitation. If you've got little ones around, you mightwant to use headphones. And if this topic is triggering for you personally,please take care of yourself. We're going to handle this with the seriousnessand respect it deserves.
Let's get into it.
A new study just came out, and the numbers are staggering. According toresearch from Georgia State University's School of Public Health, 1 in 12children are being exposed to sexual exploitation and abuse online. Let me saythat again – one in twelve kids.
Think about your child's classroom. Your neighborhood. Your church youthgroup. That statistic means that in any group of twelve children, one of themis likely dealing with online sexual exploitation or abuse. That's not somedistant problem happening somewhere else – this is happening right now, in ourcommunities, maybe even in our own homes, and we might not even know it.
Dr. Xiangming Fang, the lead researcher, put it plainly: "Rapidadvancements in digital technology and the growth of internet and smartphoneaccess, particularly in developing nations, are putting more children at riskevery day."
Every. Single. Day.
Now, I know what some of you might be thinking – "My kid's not onthose kinds of websites" or "I monitor what they do online." Andthat's good, that's important. But here's the hard truth: predators don't justhang out on the dark corners of the internet anymore. They're on gamingplatforms. Social media apps. Even educational websites. Anywhere childrengather online, predators are looking for opportunities.
HOW IT HAPPENS
So how does this happen? How are children being exploited online? Let mebreak down some of the most common tactics predators use, because knowledge isour first line of defense.
Grooming: This is the most insidious tactic. A predator will befriend a childonline, often posing as another kid or a trusted adult figure. They build trustover time – weeks, sometimes months. They learn about the child's interests,their problems at home or school, their insecurities. They make the child feelspecial, understood, seen. And then, gradually, they introduce sexual content,normalize inappropriate conversations, and manipulate the child into sendingexplicit images or engaging in sexual conversations.
The worst part? Many children don't even realize they're being groomeduntil it's too late. They think they've found a friend, someone who "getsthem" in ways their parents or peers don't.
Sextortion: This is when a predator obtains explicit images or videos of a child –sometimes through grooming, sometimes by hacking accounts or devices – and thenthreatens to share those images with the child's family, friends, or schoolunless the child sends more content or does what the predator demands. Theshame and fear keep children silent, trapped in a cycle of exploitation.
Live-streaming abuse: With technology advancing, predators are now paying towatch live-streamed abuse of children in real-time. This often happens indeveloping nations where poverty makes families vulnerable to exploitation, butit's not limited to any one region or economic class.
Gaming platforms and apps: Predators use voice chat in populargames, direct messaging features, and even seemingly innocent apps to makecontact with children. Your child might think they're just playing Minecraft,Roblox, or Fortnite with friends, but predators are using these platforms toidentify and target vulnerable kids.
