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The AFP-led ThinkUKnow program has been recognised for its work in educating the community about online child sexual exploitation at the 2023 Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards (ACVPA).

The AFP received a bronze award in the police-led category, which recognises best practice in the prevention or reduction of violence and other types of crime in Australia.

Through the ThinkUKnow program, the AFP leads the only capability in Australia that sees intelligence, examples from police investigations and victim reports of online child sexual exploitation developed into educational resources that are delivered into classrooms nationally.

ThinkUKnow is a partnership between the AFP, Commonwealth Bank, Datacom, Microsoft Australia, all state and territory police and Neighbourhood Watch Australasia.

The program supports the work of the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE), while incorporating real case studies and examples to reflect current trends and issues impacting the Australian community.

 

Assistant Commissioner Kirsty Schofield said the award validates the ThinkUKnow program as a long-standing prevention initiative in the Australian community.

“The AFP is committed to preventing the exploitation of children and investing in early intervention through programs such as ThinkUKnow,” Assistant Commissioner Schofield said.

“Our message is clear about the importance of education and empowering the community, parents/carers and teachers, to take action to prevent and respond to online child sexual exploitation.

“The AFP is proud to lead a program that continues to be recognised for its critical role in protecting children online.”

Since its inception in 2009, the scope of the ThinkUKnow program has expanded to include a suite of education materials including school presentations, resources for parents, carers and teachers including toolkits, home learning activities, fact sheets and guides. These resources and tools aim to support parents/carers and teachers and to equip them to have those important conversations either at home or in the classroom.

The ThinkUKnow program addresses topics including self-generated child abuse material, online grooming, sextortion and, importantly, encourages help-seeking behaviours. 

Assistant Commissioner Schofield said that ThinkUKnow demonstrated the importance of partnerships across law enforcement and industry.

“Through the ThinkUKnow program, we have seen the valued collaboration between law enforcement and industry to keep children safer online,” Assistant Commissioner Schofield said.

“I would like to acknowledge the presenters and volunteers representing the ThinkUKnow program who deliver presentations in schools, sometimes out-of-hours in their own time, to students and to parents, carers and teachers. Without their outstanding commitment the program would not be possible”.

In 2022-2023, the ACCCE received more than 40,000 reports of online child sexual exploitation, highlighting the need for targeted prevention and education programs, such as ThinkUKnow.

The annual ACVPA recognise and reward programs that reduce crime and violence in Australia. The awards are designed to reward benchmark projects, as well as projects which exhibit good practice in the prevention or reduction of violence and other types of crime in Australia. More information about the awards can be found on the Australian Institute of Criminology website.

The AFP and its partners are committed to stopping child exploitation and abuse and the ACCCE is driving a collaborative national approach to combatting child abuse.

The ACCCE brings together specialist expertise and skills in a central hub, supporting investigations into online child sexual exploitation and developing prevention strategies focused on creating a safer online environment.

Members of the public who have information about people involved in child abuse are urged to contact the ACCCE at www.accce.gov.au/report. If you know abuse is happening right now or a child is at risk, call police immediately on 000.

If you or someone you know is impacted by child sexual abuse and online exploitation, support services are available at www.accce.gov.au/support.

Research conducted by the ACCCE in 2020 revealed only about half of parents talked to their children about online safety. Advice and support for parents and carers about how they can help protect children online can be found at www.thinkuknow.org.au, an AFP-led education program designed to prevent online child sexual exploitation.

For more information on the role of the ACCCE, what is online child sexual exploitation and how to report it visit www.accce.gov.au.

Note to media:

Use of term CHILD ABUSE MATERIAL not CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

The correct legal term is Child Abuse Material – the move to this wording was among amendments to Commonwealth legislation in 2019 to more accurately reflect the gravity of the crimes and the harm inflicted on victims.

Use of the phrase ‘child pornography’ is inaccurate and benefits child sex abusers because it:

• indicates legitimacy and compliance on the part of the victim and therefore legality on the part of the abuser; and
• conjures images of children posing in 'provocative' positions, rather than suffering horrific abuse.

Every photograph or video captures an actual situation where a child has been abused.

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