Who Is Bob_34?
Who Is Bob_34?
Investigating Child Cyberpornography
Eye-catching headlines such as “Sixty people charged in child-porn crackdown” explode in the media with alarming frequency, giving the impression that our communities are awash with perverts. But what exactly do we know about these crimes and those who commit them? Who produces child cyberpornography? Who distributes it? Who consumes it? And is there a link between viewing and abuse?
Seeking answers to these questions, Francis Fortin and Patrice Corriveau infiltrated child-porn user groups and compared their findings to scholarship on the subject. Who Is Bob_34? breaks down popular perceptions by opening a window on a clandestine world populated by a spectrum of cyberpedophiles, ranging from occasional image collectors to sex abusers who lure and assault children. Contrary to popular perceptions, the typical cyberpedophile is in his mid-thirties and grew up using the Internet. He often believes his actions are justifiable and takes pride in collecting and sharing child porn.
This timely book reveals that this contemporary phenomenon is much more complicated than the media and commissioned reports suggest.
This fascinating look at the underbelly of cyberspace will be invaluable to police, criminologists, advocacy groups, journalists, and parents seeking to understand who is behind the production, distribution, and consumption of pedo-pornography.
Cyberpedophilia is a topic of widespread concern, yet there are still very few empirical studies of child exploitation online. In this book, Fortin and Corriveau provide evidence-based analysis of the access, production, collection, and sharing of child-porn online. It’s a unique and informative book, written in a clear and accessible way.
Cyberpedophilia elicits a lot of questions, namely, how can we better protect our kids? Without succumbing to sensationalism, this informative book empowers its readers to help protect kids, by equipping them with a better understanding of this new reality.
A must-read for all parents.
The authors move beyond the repulsion one could legitimately feel toward child pornographers to understand who the individuals are who produce, collect, and exchange child pornography online; how this type of illegal content is found on the Internet; how the Internet facilitated the emergence of a global support community for child-porn consumers; and what features characterize different types of offenders.
Who Is Bob_34? provides a valuable profile of pedophiles who use the Internet to look at, exchange, and collect images of child pornography.
Francis Fortin has worked in the field of criminal investigations and intelligence since 1999. He is an assistant professor at the School of Criminology at the Université de Montréal. His research focuses on cybercrime, criminal intelligence, data mining, and forensic analysis. He has taught specialized courses at several Quebec universities, including classes in the emerging field of open-source intelligence and classes on how to conduct cyberinvestigations. He has presented and published numerous scientific papers and is the author of a book on cybercrimes: Cybercriminalité: Entre inconduite et crime organisé.
Prior to becoming an associate professor in the Department of Criminology at the University of Ottawa, Patrice Corriveau worked as a senior policy analyst at Justice Canada. He is currently researching the history of suicide in Quebec since 1763 and is conducting a research project into the challenges and issues posed by new technologies for youth, especially in the school environment. He is also the founder of the non-profit organization Cyberaction Jeunesse Canada, which educates young and old people alike on issues related to cybersecurity. His recent books are Sex Work: Rethinking the Job, Respecting Workers (2013); Cyberpédophiles et autres agresseurs virtuels (2011); Judging Homosexuals (2011), La régulation sociale des minorités sexuelles: L’inquiétude de la différence (2011); Mais oui c’est un travail (2010); and Gangs and Girls (2009).
Introduction
1 The Investigators and the Law
2 The Evolution of ICTs and Their Effect on Trafficking
3 How Much Is Out There, and Who Are the Victims?
4 Are Search Engines Enabling?
5 Are Discussion Forums a Classroom for Cyberpedophiles?
6 Who Are Cyberpedophiles, and Is There a Link between Viewing and Abuse?
Conclusion
Notes, References, Index
