Half of Child and Adolescent Victims of Sexual Exploitation Trafficked via 'Chat Apps'

Age of Sex Trade Victims 14-16 Years 40.3%
Grooming, Assault & Extortion, Runaway Victims in Order
Overlapping Digital Sex Crime Victims Also Reported

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] It has been revealed that about half of child and adolescent victims of sex trafficking are recruited through chat apps.

On the 3rd, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and the Korea Women's Human Rights Institute published the annual report of 17 nationwide support centers for child and adolescent victims of sex trafficking. Following the enforcement of the revised Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles from Sexual Abuse, new support centers have been established and operated nationwide since last year, providing 12,520 services to 727 individuals.

The main routes through which child and adolescent victims of sex trafficking are recruited were chat apps (46.5%), followed by friends and acquaintances (12.8%), and SNS (10.7%).

Victims suffered from grooming (19.6%), assault and extortion (11.6%), runaway due to coercion (9.5%), sexually transmitted diseases (8.5%), and pregnancy (4.6%). A significant number of cases also involved overlapping digital sex crimes such as illegal filming (13.1%).

Among child and adolescent victims who visited support centers over the past year, the largest age group was 14-16 years old (40.3%), followed by 17-19 years old (38.7%), and 10-13 years old (6.6%). Victims with disabilities accounted for 6.5% as well.

Since guardian interest is crucial to prevent victims from being drawn back into sex trafficking after returning home, the support centers conducted 355 sessions of recurrence prevention education for 78 legal representatives, including parents. In addition, the centers provided counseling (76.7%), legal support (10.2%), and medical support (4.6%).

The support centers are conducting sex trafficking monitoring activities online (11,993 times) and on-site visits (63 times) to entertainment districts and other areas to prevent victimization and rescue victims.

Choi Seongji, Director of the Rights Promotion Bureau at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, stated, "Sex trafficking targeting children and adolescents often leads to other sexual crimes such as sexual violence, so swift response before the occurrence of harm is of utmost importance. We will strengthen post-care such as counseling after returning home, along with sex trafficking prevention activities in cooperation with local governments, protective facilities, and related organizations."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.