Child Sexual Abuse, Exploitation and Grooming
When a child goes missing, this can be a red flag for abuse. Sexual abuse and exploitation are key underlying causes or aftermath of children running away from home, care, or reception centres. Missing Children Europe considers child sexual abuse and exploitation as acts of violence that do not necessarily involve physical contact with a child, and that can happen both online, offline or in a hybrid manner. While abuse concerns the act of engaging in sexual activity with a child, exploitation is a form of abuse distinguished by an element of exchange or gain, being it material, financial, psychological or emotional. In this context, we consider grooming as a form of child sexual abuse leading to exploitation.
Grooming refers to the deliberate process of approaching and gaining trust with a child through the internet or other digital technologies, with the purpose of exploiting or abusing them.
Grooming is increasingly linked to child disappearance, representing both a driver for children to run away from home or care, and a risk for those who are already out of a protection system and may easily fall in the hands of a groomer. To prevent children from going missing, all forms of sexual abuse and grooming, online and offline, need to be better detected, reported, and prosecuted. Law enforcement, child protection specialists, educators, tech platforms, and policymakers must collaborate to prevent and address child sexual abuse and exploitation through victim-centered policies, integrated child protection systems, and specialized justice procedures. Missing Children Europe engages everyday with all the relevant stakeholders to ensure coordinated efforts and responses. As part of our work, we are a funding member of the European Child Sexual Abuse Legislation Advocacy Group (ECLAG), a coalition of more than 80 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society groups dedicated to ending child sexual abuse and exploitation, both online and offline.
We are a member of the Lanzarote Committee, monitoring implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on The Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual abuse, and of the European Financial Coalition.
Facts & Figures
Missing Children and Grooming
No 1
92
cases of online grooming in missing children cases were reported in 2025 by the 116 000 hotlines
1 in 4
missing children cases involved abuse or violence before or during the missing episode
Online Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM)
A 450% rise
compared to 2024 of suspected online records of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) was recorded.
This means over four million CSAM records were identified and exchanged through INHOPE hotlines (global network).
More than 60%
of illegal images and videos of child sexual abuse is hosted in Europe (INHOPE hotlines (global network).
19.6%
of children in Western Europe experienced online solicitation (unwanted or pressured sexual interactions online) before age 18 (Childlight: Into the Light Index 2025).
Projects
COG - Combat Online Grooming
Building on the CESAGRAM project, the Combat Online Grooming (COG) project seeks to prevent grooming online and offline and deepen understanding of its link to missing children. Through research, prevention, awareness-raising, and advocacy, COG strengthens child protection systems, equips professionals, and supports victims by addressing grooming as a serious form of child sexual abuse.
CESAGRAM - Towards a Comprehensive European Strategy Against tech-facilitated Grooming and Missing
Online child sexual abuse is a growing phenomenon. The consequences of online child sexual abuse on young people are severe. Some of Missing Children Europe’s hotlines have raised concerns about grooming being an increasing factor in disappearances, particularly runaways.
CESAGRAM aims to address this problem by advancing the knowledge base and enhancing the understanding of the link between children who go missing and online grooming for sexual purposes.
bE-aware: Empowering Youth for a Safer Digital Future
The bE-aware Project seeks to protect young people from online sexual exploitation, abuse, and the associated risks of going missing. It offers resources and programs to help youth identify online risks, make informed choices, and safeguard their future.
Missing Children Europe, D’Antilles & D’Ailleurs, The Smile of the Child, KEMEA, CESIE, Storytellme, and the A.B. Institute of Entrepreneurship Development LTD have united efforts for the bE-Aware Project, which aims to empower European youth to navigate the digital world safely.
European Financial Coalition (EFC)
We led the European Financial Coalition against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children Online, bringing together law enforcement, the private sector and civil society to take action on the payment and ICT systems that are used to run these illegal operations. In 2016 Europol’s C3 unit took over coordination.
Together against sexual exploitation of children
Jointly run by Missing Children Europe, ECPAT International and eNACSO. This project focused on identifying the manner in the EU Directive 2011/93/EU on combating the sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children and child pornography had been transposed by EU Member States.
Resources
Report – From Grooming to Abuse, Exploitation and Disappearance: Protecting Children across Digital Spaces
CESAGRAM Survivor Report – 20 “Survivor Voice” Recommendations from 11 Countries
INHOPE Annual Report 2025 – Key trends and developments in the fight against online child sexual abuse material (CSAM)
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