Online Sexual Exploitation of Children

Online Sexual Exploitation of Children:
A Global Crisis with Local Consequences Every second, a child is exploited online. You can help stop it.

Online sexual exploitation of children (OSEC) is one of the fastest-growing forms of abuse worldwide. In Cambodia and across Southeast Asia, the crisis is intensified by poverty, gender inequality, and limited child protection systems.

What Is Online Sexual Exploitation?

Online sexual exploitation includes grooming, coercion, blackmail, and the sharing of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Children are often targeted through social media, messaging apps, and even by peers.

“In Cambodia, 1 in 10 internet-using children aged 12–17 have experienced online sexual exploitation.”
— UNICEF Cambodia

Globally, over 300 million children are victims of online sexual exploitation each year.
— Childlight Global
— UNSW Report

Southeast Asia Vulnerability

Interactive Regional Map

🇰🇭

Cambodia

🇻🇳

Vietnam

🇹🇭

Thailand

🇲🇲

Myanmar

Click a country to learn more

Explore how rapid internet expansion without adequate child protection creates vulnerability across the region.

The Reality

Many children have little or no digital literacy, and when abuse happens, stigma and silence often stop them from seeking help. Without safe adults and strong protection systems around them, online harm can quickly become real world exploitation.

1 in 3

internet users worldwide is a child (UNICEF)

2.77hrs

average daily screen time for children aged 6-14 in Southeast Asia

2.5M

child sexual exploitation reports in Philippines in 2022 alone (UNODC)

90%+

of teens aged 13-17 in Malaysia have social media accounts (UNODC)

Girls Face The Highest Risk

Girls are especially vulnerable. They are often promised love or escape, only to be blackmailed, coerced, and abused. Without safe adults and strong protection systems around them, online harm can quickly become real world exploitation.

How Hagar Responds

Hagar works to prevent, intervene, and restore:

Investigations to identify victims and bring perpetrators to justice

Survivor care including trauma counseling, safe housing, and legal support

Prevention education in schools and communities to stop abuse before it starts

You Can Help Protect a Child Today

Your donation helps girls like Dara escape exploitation and begin healing. With your support, Hagar can expand its reach, train more frontline responders, and ensure every child is seen, heard, and safe.

Donate Now to protect vulnerable children from online sexual exploitation.