The amount of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) circulating online has exploded. 27 million unique files were reported to The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in 2022 alone. And NCMEC’s CyberTipline saw a 47% increase in reports between 2020 and 2022. The recirculation of abuse imagery forces survivors to relive the trauma.

ChildFund’s #TakeItDown is a new national multimedia campaign to pressure policymakers to regulate tech to proactively remove child sexual abuse material from their platforms. The campaign unites parents, NGOs, policymakers, influencers, and media under a powerful message: #TakeItDown

Campaign objectives:

- Raise awareness of technology’s role in the growing crisis of child sexual abuse material online.

- Leverage public awareness and pressure to generate political will and engage policymakers.

- Be a voice for survivors, so they do not need to be their own advocates for action on this issue.

With the emotive and visceral ask of #TakeItDown, the creative sought to rally the public and put pressure on policymakers to hold tech companies accountable. We began by showing how technology has created the perfect environment for the creation and distribution of child sexual abuse material: Technology created this monster, only technology can #takeitdown.

In the film, our main character gives a matter-of-fact delivery on how technology has created the perfect environment to engage in his monstrous behavior. In a behind the scenes segment of the docuseries, we revealed the inspiration for the monster character– drawings by child victims of sexual abuse. Interviews of experts who explained the urgency of the message played on the microsite with resources for parents, support for survivors and an innovative way to take action: a single-click public pressure button that lets users tell members of Congress to pass new legislation to protect kids online.

Our PR strategy was to leverage child/survivor focused partner organizations, influencers, leading experts who could communicate their lived experiences, and members of Congress who would raise the profile of the campaign. Our target were parents, worried about their children's safety online but feel that they don’t have the power to protect them, and young adults (age 18-24) with siblings. They were the guinea pigs for an unregulated internet. Because of the dual target, it was critical to have pick-up in mainstream publications. Our goal was to secure exclusives across digital and broadcast at launch to create the national momentum to demand tech # TakeItDown.

At launch, we secured exclusives in People Magazine, MSNBC’s Morning Joe and additional coverage on CNN International, Associated Press, NY1/Spectrum and more. High-profile influencers including Paris Hilton, Lucy Hale, Wanda Sykes, Jillian Michaels and Margaret Cho shared the message on social media.

The 7-week campaign also garnered support from key policymakers and policy leaders including Senator Dick Durbin, the Department of Homeland Security, the Senate Judiciary Committee and more. Senator Durbin was an early champion of the campaign, joining ChildFund for the launch on Morning Joe and penning a joint op-ed with ChildFund’s CEO Isam Ghanim published in The Hill on October 16 calling for the passage of the Stop CSAM Act.

The campaign unified organizations working to end online child sexual exploitation and abuse with a combined organizational reach of 18.9 million across social platforms. The coalition continues to collaborate on this issue with ChildFund’s advocacy leadership.

Our media efforts outperformed benchmarks and earned over $1 million in gratis media, increasing our media budget seven-fold. Over the 7-week flight, we achieved:

- 10.1 billion impressions and counting

- Over 6.4 million video views, with a 49.3% completion rate

- 3,200+ public actions

- 1,700% increase in X/Twitter activity

The campaign has helped unite the sector supported by 24 partners including organizations from the End OSEAC Coalition, the first coalition of NGOs dedicated to advocating for children’s safety online, of which ChildFund International is the Chair.

The campaign garnered support from key policymakers and policy leaders, including Senator Dick Durbin. The campaign continues to be used to pressure members of Congress to regulate tech and demand they protect children on their platforms. On January 31, 2024 CEOs of 5 leading technology companies testified in front of Congress to address how they will protect children on their platforms.

The PSA is now part of the Department of Homeland Security’s iGuardians training program to train agents and teach online safety in schools. In the first four months that the PSA has been integrated into the program, it has reached approximately 19,000 middle schoolers, high schoolers and parents. 11 victim disclosures have been made and at least one active investigation has been opened.

Across social media, survivors expressed their support and gratitude: “As someone who has experienced this as a child, I have so much appreciation for what you are doing.”

The campaign continues.