Into the Light Index 2025 - Introduction
Last year, Childlight’s inaugural Into the Light Index on Global Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (CSEA) delivered a shock to the world: for the first time, we produced global figures on CSEA, estimating that a staggering 300 million children are affected every year by technology-facilitated abuse. The number is haunting. It rightly drew global attention.
This year, our second edition of the index, builds on that foundation by providing the first ever country level estimates of the prevalence, scale, and nature of CSEA. We begin with Western Europe and South Asia, regions where our initial data identified particularly high levels of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) hosting and were urgent, co-ordinated action could deliver major wins for children.
The latest findings are no less troubling. Approximately 1 in 15 children (6.7%) report experiencing rape or sexual assault by age 18, based on 48 studies from 19 countries across Western Europe. This is equivalent to around five million children. In South Asia, where we found representative survey data in India, Nepal and Sri Lanka, around 1 in 8 children (12.5%) report such abuse before the age of 18. That would equate to about 54 million children in those three countries alone.
Technology-facilitated abuse remains widespread and the deliberate commercially led choices of major technology companies, such as rolling out end-to-end encryption without safeguards, are making it harder to detect and stop. In the Netherlands alone, the scale of CSAM is so vast that it accounts for more than 60% of all material hosted in Western Europe. This is unacceptable. Yet, it also highlights that decisive action in one country can make a difference across a whole region.
At Childlight, we insist that this global pandemic of CSEA must be understood, and addressed, as a public health emergency. Just as the world mobilised against HIV/AIDS, Covid-19 and smallpox, so too must we mobilise against CSEA. With the right interventions, the right regulation, and the right will, millions of children can be protected.
The numbers are huge, but they also bring hope. Data shows us what works and what must be done. Since the 2024 Global Ministerial Summit on Ending Violence Against Children, 30 governments have pledged to act to make every click online safer for children. Intervention models, such as Barnahus and Child Advocacy Centres, are strengthening detection and child-centred responses. Family-based interventions are showing promise in reducing re-abuse in cases of neglect and physical violence.
We also see encouraging signs that regulation works, following leadership by several governments around the world. Emerging threats, like AI generated CSAM, are being used to create new forms of harm, but AI, with adequate regulation, can also be harnessed to protect millions of children. With proper safeguards, AI can help remove abusive content faster than ever, ending the online re-victimisation of children whose images have circulated for years.
Safety by design, standard in every other area of consumer protection, must become the norm in the digital world. Mobile phones were once sold as reassurance of safety for children; today, they too often provide a direct line to offenders. That is a failure of design and of regulation, not an inevitability of technology.
Encouragingly, from India to Sweden, governments and authorities are developing robust systems to count, categorise, and act on data, becoming ‘data beacons’ that close prevention gaps and inspire others. Progress is not only possible; it is already underway. Children deserve nothing less. Increasingly, survivors and advocates are calling for restitution, recognising that justice for children subjected to CSEA is not only about prosecution but also about healing and recovery.
Our purpose at Childlight remains clear and unwavering: to safeguard children from sexual exploitation and abuse worldwide. Over the past year, we have grown from laying foundations to driving measurable impact – turning data into action, supporting frontline practitioners and reframing the global narrative. With support from Human Dignity Foundation, our teams, hosted by the University of Edinburgh and the University of New South Wales, continue to collaborate with researchers, policymakers and practitioners around the globe to take on this complex challenge.
This report is testament to their efforts. It underlines an inescapable truth: CSEA exists because it is allowed to exist. With sufficient will, it can be stopped and prevented. The time to act is now. The data is clear, the solutions are within reach and the stakes could not be higher.
Children can’t wait.
Paul Stanfield, Chief Executive Officer, Childlight – Global Child Safety Data Institute