pornography13

Live Video Broadcasts
Web cameras are one of the new and admired electronic toys used by pedophiles
and child molesters to gain immediate sexual gratification and exploit a young
person. Most of the commonly used instant message programs have the
capability of connecting a Web camera to the Internet for live videoconferences.
Many of the programs have an icon letting other users know if there is a Web
camera attached to another chat participant’s computer.
The sexual abuser sits in the chat rooms and game areas where children are
known to visit. They contact those children with a Web camera and coerce them
into masturbating and posing in sexually lewd positions in front of their cameras.
The sex offender may be viewing one child or may be filling his screen with
several teens on cameras at the same time. There can also be more than one
offender viewing the same child.
Many of these offenders have hardware attached to their computers that enable
them to capture the live broadcast and save it to his computer, a CD, DVD, or a
videocassette. Once the video is saved, the offender can view it again in the
future, trade with others sharing his same interests, offer the video for sale or
add it to a collection online and freely distribute it. Specialized movie editing
software can be used to edit the video, make custom movies or combine other
clips and make a longer movie.
Teens have discovered that a Web camera can be a useful tool in a prosperous
but dangerous online business opportunity.
One young man received a pre-paid charge card for his birthday. The fifteen year
old then registered a domain name and paid for hosting services. He was a very
talented Webmaster and created a Web site where he could broadcast his live
appearances on his Web site. He designed a chat room so that visitors could
simultaneously chat and view him in real time.
Each day after school and nearly all day and night on weekends, the boy would
interact with adults who coached him by making suggestions regarding what
sexual poses they would like to see him perform in front of the camera. He told
his audience that he would remain fully clothed until someone donated money to
him. One participant typed in the chat room and asked the boy what he would do if
he gave the teen $10. The boy answered and said that he would take off his
pants. Another viewer asked how much the money the boy required to
masturbate for him. The boy quoted a price of $50. Once the negotiations were
made, the boy instructed site visitors to click on a button on his Web site where
they would be taken to PayPal, a secure payment processing service. Those
wishing to watch his live broadcasts could choose from several payment methods
including personal check, credit card, or wire transfer. Approximately two minutes
after a person made a payment, the boy was notified that a payment was received
and he then began to sexually exploit himself with encouragement from those
who submitted payments to him.
Once the checks or charge cards cleared the online payment-processing center,
they were deposited into the boy’s checking account. This process took between
24 and 72 hours to complete.
Law enforcement discovered this young man’s activity after receiving a tip from
someone who knew him and was concerned about his safety. The boy’s parents
were shocked to learn that their son was sexually exploiting himself from his
bedroom in a nice middle class neighborhood.
This boy and others like him can make between $300-$500 per day displaying
themselves in any position imaginable in front of those who are child
pornographers wishing to capture new and fresh material for their own
collections of to trade with the thousands of others who share an interest in
exploiting youth.