Council of Europe

We are strongly committed to fighting sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children online, through the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (Lanzarote Convention), and bilateral and regional projects.
The Committee of Parties to the Lanzarote Convention, the Lanzarote Committee, addressed the online dimension of child sexual abuse and exploitation in early years by adopting three opinions on Article 23 of the Lanzarote Convention - Solicitation of children for sexual purposes through information and communication technologies (ICTs), on the applicability of the Lanzarote Convention to sexual offences against children facilitated by ICTs and  on child sexually suggestive or explicit images and/or videos generated, shared and received by children. In addition, the 2nd monitoring round of the Lanzarote Committee focused on the protection of children against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse facilitated by information and communication technologies (ICTs) – Addressing the challenges raised by child self-generated images and/or videos. The corresponding Implementation Report adopted in March 2022 contains specific recommendations and promising practices. In this framework, States Parties to the Lanzarote Convention commit to criminalise all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse against children, online and offline, including knowingly accessing child sexual abuse material online. To raise awareness on the key findings of the Implementation Report, comprehensive thematic and country factsheets were prepared and published in 2023 to help State Parties and civil society to identify and address gaps and challenges in their frameworks. 

The 2024 edition of the annual-awareness raising Day (18 November) on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse will focus on Protecting children from sexual exploitation and sexual abuse in the context of emerging technologies (including AI and XR).

Following the European Commission’s proposal for a temporary derogation to provisions in the e-Privacy Directive to allow for the processing of personal and other data for the purpose of combating child sexual abuse online, the Lanzarote Committee commissioned the preparation of the Report “Respecting human rights and the rule of law when using automated technology to detect online child sexual exploitation and abuse”. This report, prepared by independent experts, provides in-depth expertise on appropriate solutions to reconcile the various human rights at stake while integrating safeguards in actions carried out in the public interest. As the EU proposed Regulation to find a lasting solution once the temporary derogation expires is still being negotiated, this report remains very relevant.

The 2023 Octopus Cybercrime Conference held a dedicated workshop on the automatic detection of child sexual exploitation and abuse materials to explore current challenges and trends regarding the proliferation of child sexual exploitation and abuse material (CSAM). The workshop was moderated by the Lanzarote Committee Chairperson. In addition, resources to protect individuals, including children, from cyber violence, were presented at the Conference.

In 2023, the Council of Europe joined the WeProtect Global Alliance, a coalition of over 250 organisations committed to ending child sexual exploitation and abuse online. As a member, we will work closely with governments worldwide, civil society, and private sector stakeholders to address the growing threat of child sexual abuse online.

The Steering Committee for the Rights of the Child (CDENF) is working on a Report on the rights of the child and artificial intelligence (to be finalised by the end of 2024). Subsequently, it is expected to develop a child rights impact assessment tool on artificial intelligence. 

Through our country specific project ”Preventing and protecting children from violence, including in the digital environment in the Republic of Moldova” (Phase III), and a new regional project “End Online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse@Europe Plus (EndOCSEA@Europe+) focusing on Georgia, Montenegro and the Republic of Moldova, we are conducting a series of actions to raise awareness on the risks of online child sexual exploitation and abuse, and promoting digital literacy and safe use of internet for children in these countries. This includes inter alia raising awareness about Safer Internet Day on social media by disseminating relevant Council of Europe tools and materials and encouraging CSOs to join Safer Internet Day platform, as well as conducting training sessions for professionals working to combat online child sexual exploitation and abuse.