The scale and sophistication of online child sexual exploitation are growing faster than many child protection systems can respond, with artificial intelligence accelerating existing forms of abuse while creating new ways to target children, according to a new report.
The Safe Online Annual Report 2025–26 brings together the latest evidence from leading child protection organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), INHOPE, the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), Thorn and Childlight, alongside insights from Safe Online’s global investment portfolio.
The report highlights a sharp rise in reports of suspected child sexual abuse material and online enticement, as well as a dramatic increase in AI-generated child sexual abuse material.
INHOPE processed nearly 4.8 million reports of suspected child sexual abuse material in 2025, a 450% increase from the previous year. Of the identified victims, 91% were between 3 and 13 years old, while 98% were girls.
The Internet Watch Foundation recorded a 26,385% increase in AI-generated child sexual abuse videos compared with the previous year. Nearly two-thirds of the material identified was classified in the most severe category of abuse.
NCMEC received more than 21 million reports of suspected child sexual exploitation, including 1.5 million reports linked to generative artificial intelligence. Reports of online enticement also increased by 156%, highlighting the growing ways children are targeted and manipulated online.
Taken together, the data show how technology is changing the speed, scale and complexity of online child sexual exploitation. “When you look across the latest global evidence, it becomes clear that the challenge is growing faster, becoming more complex and increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence,” said Marija Manojlovic, executive director of Safe Online. “The question is no longer whether action is needed, but whether we are investing quickly enough in the solutions that will keep children safe.”
The report comes as governments, technology companies and civil society organizations face growing pressure to strengthen protections for children online. Recent public controversies involving AI systems have renewed attention on the risks children face in digital spaces, but Safe Online says individual incidents are part of a broader and rapidly evolving problem.
The report argues that artificial intelligence is not only creating new forms of abuse but also increasing the speed at which existing forms of child sexual exploitation can be produced, distributed and detected.
Safe Online says regulation will be important but cannot, on its own, keep pace with the rapidly changing nature of online harms. It is calling for sustained investment in research, technology, international cooperation and child protection systems.
Nearly $100 million invested in child online safety
As it approaches its 10th anniversary, Safe Online’s report also highlights nearly a decade of investment in efforts to tackle online child sexual exploitation and abuse.
Since 2017, the organization has invested almost $100 million in initiatives across more than 120 countries, supporting governments, researchers, civil society organizations and technology partners.
The investments have supported the development of AI-enabled detection tools, strengthened reporting systems, improved cross-border cooperation and generated evidence to help governments and other stakeholders respond to online abuse.
Safe Online says its work also supports the development of innovative approaches to child protection as technology evolves.
“Protecting children online requires more than reacting to the latest crisis,” the report says. “It requires the sustained development of the systems, tools and partnerships needed to identify harm, respond to it and prevent it.”
The organization describes itself as the world’s only global fund dedicated exclusively to ending online child sexual exploitation and abuse.
The report calls for continued collaboration between governments, technology companies, researchers, civil society organizations and funders to ensure that child protection systems can keep pace with technological change.
Safe Online Executive Director Marija Manojlovic is available to comment on the impact of artificial intelligence on child online safety, global trends in child sexual exploitation and abuse, and the role of governments, technology companies and philanthropy in responding to online harms.
The Safe Online Annual Report 2025–26 combines publicly available research and data from leading child protection organizations with evidence from Safe Online’s own global portfolio of investments and partnerships.
