Online porn, child sex abuse linked
U.S. study finds a large percentage of Internet offenders admitted assaulting youngsters
July 20, 2007
JULIAN SHER
BENEDICT CAREY
new york times

Experts have often wondered what proportion of men who download explicit sexual images of children also molest them. A new U.S. government study of convicted Internet offenders suggests that the number may be startlingly high: 85 per cent of the offenders said they had committed acts of sexual abuse against minors, from inappropriate touching to rape.

The study, which has not yet been published, is stirring a vehement debate among psychologists, law enforcement officers and prison officials, who cannot agree on how the findings should be presented or interpreted.

The research, carried out by psychologists at the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons, is the first in-depth survey of such online offenders' sexual behaviour done by prison therapists who were actively performing treatment. Its findings have circulated privately among experts, who say they could have enormous implications for public safety and law enforcement.

Traffic in online child pornography has exploded in recent years, and the new study, some experts say, should be made public as soon as possible, to identify men who claim to be "just looking at pictures" but could be predators.

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Julian Sher is a Canadian investigative journalist and author of a book on Internet child predators. Benedict Carey is a reporter with The New York Times.

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