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FBI Warns of Child Sexual Abuse Material Being Displayed During Zoom Meetings
The COVID-19 crisis has caused many organizations and schools to
conduct virtual meetings/events, some of which are open to the public.
Additionally, links to many virtual events are being shared online,
resulting in a lack of vetting of approved participants.
During the last few months, the FBI has received more than 195 reports
of incidents throughout the United States and in other countries in
which a Zoom participant was able to broadcast a video depicting child
sexual abuse material (CSAM). The FBI considers this activity to be a
violent crime, as every time child sexual abuse material is viewed, the
depicted child is re-victimized. Furthermore, anyone who inadvertently
sees child sexual abuse material depicted during a virtual event is
potentially a victim as well.
The FBI is committed to apprehending any individual who produces or
distributes child sexual abuse material and is seeking the public’s
assistance to identify the person or persons responsible for these
egregious crimes.
If you are the administrator or host of a Zoom meeting in which CSAM
was broadcast, please contact the FBI; do not delete or destroy any of
your computer logs without further direction.
If you recorded a Zoom meeting in which child sexual abuse material was
broadcast, please contact the FBI for assistance in removing the CSAM
from your device.
If you believe you are a victim of a child sexual abuse material
broadcast during a Zoom event, as defined above, please contact the FBI
to learn about your victim rights and possible victim assistance.
If you know who is committing these most recent egregious crimes, please contact the FBI.
The following steps may mitigate future child sexual abuse material issues during Zoom events:
Do not make meetings or classrooms public. In Zoom, there are two options to make a meeting private:
Require a meeting password.
Use the waiting room feature and control the admittance of guests.
Do not share a link to a teleconference or classroom on an
unrestricted, publicly available social media post. Provide the link
directly to specific attendees.
Manage screensharing options. In Zoom, change screensharing to “Host Only.”
If you are a victim of child sexual abuse material being broadcast
during a Zoom event or if you have information regarding the identity
of any individual distributing or producing CSAM, please report it to
the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324) or anonymously online at
tips.fbi.gov.
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