Deepfakes and sextortion on the rise among young people in Switzerland
Keystone-SDA
Reports of deepfakes, sextortion and digital sexual violence are rising sharply in Switzerland, according to the portal clickandstop.ch.
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Child Protection Switzerland is calling for urgent action to protect minors from AI.
The clickandstop.ch platform, developed in conjunction with the Guido Fluri Foundation and the Federal Office of Police (fedpol), warns that “digital sexual violence is affecting more and more minors”, according to a press release issued by Child Protection Switzerland.
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Now the main national contact point in Switzerland, 9,697 URLs containing child pornography have been reported to clickandstop.ch since 2022.
In addition to anonymous reporting of illegal content, clickandstop.ch offers advice and prevention via its telephone and chat services.
Against this backdrop, Child Protection Switzerland is calling for a tougher legal framework. The organisation is supporting the petition “Deepfakes and digital violence”, addressed to Federal Councillor Beat Jans, arguing that current measures remain insufficient in the face of the rise of AI tools, as well as the “internet initiative”, supported by representatives of all parties.
The phenomenon in Switzerland is part of a global trend. Last year, the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) examined more than 312,000 cases of depictions of sexual violence against children around the world. A new record was set.
At the same time, new technologies are creating additional risks: the IWF recorded more than 3,400 AI-generated videos of child abuse, more than 260 times the number recorded the previous year.
https://www.clickandstop.ch/
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Adapted from French by AI/mga
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