Police have made the first arrest in the investigation into online groups trading photographs of women and children, detaining a 21-year-old man in Beliatta, and have published dedicated email addresses for the public to report such groups.
The suspect is accused of operating Facebook groups in which photographs of women and children were shared in an obscene manner, NewsFirst reported. The arrest was made by officers of the Bureau for the Prevention of Abuse of Children and Women.
Police seized the suspect’s mobile phone. Digital forensic examinations are under way to establish the extent of the activity, identify possible accomplices and trace other platforms or users linked to the operation.
Two reporting addresses
The Computer Crime Investigation Division has begun identifying Facebook accounts and groups involved and is moving to disable them while pursuing criminal investigations against their operators.
Two channels have been opened. Complaints about nude photographs, intimate images and other content infringing personal privacy go to [email protected]. Requests to remove content causing distress or reputational harm go to [email protected]. The division can also be reached on 011 2381058.
AI-generated material named
Police described the material in circulation as including photographs, manipulated images and AI-generated videos promoting the exploitation of women and children — the first time artificial intelligence has been named explicitly in this investigation. NewsFirst said the trend has become more common in recent months, particularly through Facebook groups.
The ministry’s referral
Separately on Friday, the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs restated that groups on Facebook and other platforms are being used to trade sexual videos and private photographs of women and children, the Daily Mirror reported. It said fake accounts were being used to sell images of people known to the operators, in some cases female members of their own families, and that many groups are run from overseas.
That account matches the referral the ministry made to two police units on Thursday, which SLCERT escalated to Meta. Friday’s arrest is the first enforcement action reported since.
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