Project Safe Childhood and the National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction
June 14, 2024
Project Safe Childhood and the National Strategy for Child
Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction
Countering child sexual exploitation is a perennial issue for
• Enhancing public awareness. The goal is to provide
policymakers, law enforcement, and the public. Project Safe
national public awareness and educational programs on
Childhood (PSC) is the Department of Justice’s (DOJ’s)
the threat of online sexual predators and how to report
nationwide initiative to counter child sexual exploitation
possible child exploitation violations.
and abuse. To complement PSC, DOJ has a National
Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction,
• Holding offenders accountable. This involves
outlining the department’s efforts to counter child
increasing federal involvement in child exploitation and
exploitation and serving as a call to action for Congress and
enticement cases, including by providing for enhanced
others, including the technology industry and
investigative tools and federal prosecutions.
nongovernmental organizations. Policymakers may
examine and evaluate DOJ’s efforts to counter child
The authorizing legislation for PSC also authorized DOJ to
exploitation, among their broader efforts to counter
add Assistant U.S. Attorneys dedicated to prosecuting PSC-
exploitation and keep children safe, particularly in the
related cases, establish new ICAC task forces, enhance
online environment.
forensic capabilities of ICAC task forces, enhance FBI task
forces focused on countering child exploitation, and expand
Project Safe Childhood
the purposes of PSC, as deemed necessary.
PSC was authorized by Title I of the Adam Walsh Child
Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-248; 34 U.S.C.
ICAC Task Forces
§20942) and launched in May 2006. Within DOJ, PSC is
DOJ’s ICAC Task Force program supports state and local
led by the U.S. Attorneys and the Criminal Division’s Child
law enforcement task forces in responding to online
Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). Other partners
enticement of children, child exploitation, and child
include the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task
obscenity and child sexual abuse material (CSAM) cases.
forces, federal law enforcement (e.g., the Federal Bureau of
ICAC task force support involves investigative assistance,
Investigation [FBI], the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S.
training and technical assistance, victim services, and
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security
community education. Currently, 61 ICAC task forces are
Investigations, the U.S. Secret Service, and the U.S.
in operation; these represent over 5,400 federal, state, local,
Marshals Service); advocacy organizations; and state, local,
and tribal law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies.
and tribal law enforcement.
The ICAC program notes that since its inception in 1998, it
Initially, PSC focused on technology-facilitated
has reviewed over 844,600 complaints of child sexual
exploitation. However, in May 2011 DOJ expanded the
victimization, resulting in over 89,400 individuals being
initiative “to encompass all federal crimes involving the
arrested. The program also provides training to ICAC
sexual exploitation of a minor, including sex trafficking of a
members through webinars, in-person classroom training,
minor and crimes against children committed in Indian
and e-learning to complement the in-person training. (The
country. Failure to register as a sex offender offenses now
ICAC program receives funding as part of DOJ’s broader
also fall within the ambit of Project Safe Childhood.” The
Missing and Exploited Children program, which also
primary activities of PSC are the following:
provides support for the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children [NCMEC] and the AMBER Alert
• Building partnerships. These collaborations integrate
Program.)
federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement efforts to
investigate and prosecute child exploitation, and include
National Strategy for Child Exploitation
partnerships with the ICAC task forces. They may also
Prevention and Interdiction
involve efforts to raise awareness and identify and
While not authorized as part of PSC, DOJ’s National
rescue victims of exploitation.
Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction
directly supports PSC’s goals of countering child
• Coordinating law enforcement. This involves federal
exploitation. The Providing Resources, Officers, and
case coordination within DOJ and with
Technology To Eradicate Cyber Threats to Our Children
multijurisdictional task forces established in connection
Act of 2008 (PROTECT Our Children Act of 2008, P.L.
with PSC.
110-401), among other things, directed DOJ to establish
and implement a national strategy on the prevention and
• Training PSC partners. This involves training on the
interdiction of child sexual exploitation. It specified that the
investigation and prosecution of computer-facilitated
national strategy is to establish long-range, comprehensive
crimes against children.
goals to combat child exploitation and that DOJ is to
https://crsreports.congress.gov
Project Safe Childhood and the National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction
coordinate its programs to combat child exploitation with
at the end of FY2012 (PSC was initially authorized at $33.0
other federal programs, as well as with international, state,
million for FY2007 and such sums as may be necessary for
local, and tribal law enforcement agencies and the private
FY2008–FY2012); and updating the program to enhance
sector. As part of this strategy, DOJ is to assess the
federal law enforcement resources to prosecute PSC-related
effectiveness of the ICAC Task Force program and conduct
cases and help expand awareness about technology-
periodic reviews of the effectiveness of each ICAC task
facilitated exploitation such as CSAM. As the program has
force, among other items. Taken together, this information
continued for over a decade without authorized
is to be included in a report to Congress one year after
appropriations, policymakers may debate the benefit of
enactment of the act—or October 13, 2009—and every
authorizing appropriations for PSC itself or the PSC-related
other year beginning with February 1, 2011. In total, DOJ
activities of its participating agencies—such as additional
has issued three national strategy reports: in 2010, 2016,
federal prosecutors for child exploitation cases.
and 2023.
Policymakers may also examine whether the PSC program
activities are aligned with the goals outlined in the 2023
2023 Strategy
Strategy to counter child exploitation.
In June 2023, DOJ released the third and most recent
National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and
Investigations of CSAM and Support for ICACs. There
Interdiction (2023 Strategy). The 2023 Strategy recognizes
has been an increase in CSAM circulating online. NCMEC
the role of technology in child exploitation, stating that “it
operates the CyberTipline, a nationwide centralized system
is imperative to acknowledge that the benefits of
for reporting suspected online exploitation of children. The
technology that prioritizes encryption, anonymization, co-
public and electronic communication services or remote
mingling of adult and child users, and limitless information
computing service providers (collectively known as
exchange come with a cost.” It also notes that child
electronic service providers [ESPs]) can make reports of
exploitation threats have grown in three distinct ways:
suspected child sexual exploitation to the CyberTipline.
ESPs are required by law to report such incidents they
• Scale. There has been an increase in the number of
become aware of on their systems. NCMEC evaluates and
victims and offenders identified as well as the quantity
prioritizes these reports and makes them available to
of CSAM circulating.
federal, state, local, and international law enforcement
agencies, including the ICAC task forces. NCMEC received
• Complexity. The evolving digital landscape, including
over 36.2 million reports to the CyberTipline in 2023, a
numerous online platforms as well as encryption and
more than 12% increase over the previous year, and over
anonymizing technologies, makes investigations of
90% of these involved uploading of CSAM by individuals
online exploitation more challenging.
outside the United States. DOJ supports the ICAC task
forces and reports that its support has not increased at a
• Dangerousness. Investigators have identified
commensurate pace with CyberTipline reports sent to the
increasingly younger victims who have experienced
ICAC task forces. Policymakers may examine how
violence.
increasing ICAC funding support may affect the qualitative
outcomes, not just quantitative outputs, of CSAM
To address the various child exploitation threats, the 2023
investigations and prosecutions.
Strategy outlines goals in 10 areas: legislation, funding,
enforcement, training, technology, collaboration, research,
Oversight of the National Strategy for Child
prevention, reporting, and victim services. With respect to
Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction. The
legislation, the 2023 Strategy suggests that Congress
Government Accountability Office (GAO) has noted that
consider reforms that would “permit victims of CSAM to
DOJ has not issued the national strategy every two years, as
pursue civil remedies against online providers; better
required by law. The three reports that DOJ has issued all
account for the severity of child sexual abuse offenses by
included an assessment of threats involving the sexual
updating the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines applicable to such
exploitation of children, the goals and work of federal
offenses; require certain child-serving organizations to
agencies to combat child sexual exploitation, and a review
report apparent instances of child abuse; provide a long-
of the ICAC Task Force program, among other elements.
overdue update to the terminology used to describe these
However, GAO notes that DOJ has not regularly included
offenses by eliminating the phrase ‘child pornography’
all statutorily required elements. For instance, GAO
from federal law; ensure military children are no longer
indicates that DOJ did not fully include 9 of the 19 required
deprived of access to a state’s juvenile justice system when
elements in the 2023 report. As the next strategy will be due
an incident occurs in exclusive federal jurisdiction, on any
in 2025, policymakers may look at not only timeliness of
military installation, or overseas; close gaps in, and correct
the strategy, but whether DOJ has included statutorily
adverse judicial decisions concerning federal criminal
required elements. They may also consider whether the
provisions; and enact provisions designed to afford child
reporting requirements should be updated to reflect the
victims better protections in the federal criminal justice
evolving scale, complexity, and dangerousness of the child
system.”
exploitation landscape that DOJ has identified.
Policy Considerations
Kristin Finklea, Specialist in Domestic Security
PSC Reauthorization. In looking to the future of PSC,
policymakers have been considering issues including
IF12688
reauthorizing appropriations for the program, which expired
https://crsreports.congress.gov
Project Safe Childhood and the National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction
Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to
congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress.
Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has
been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the
United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be
reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include
copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you
wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.
https://crsreports.congress.gov | IF12688 · VERSION 1 · NEW