The exploiters of children need never come in contact with their victims,
thanks to cyber technology.
Instead, the Indiana State Police notes, “sexually explicit images and
videos of children can literally be produced and disseminated on line in a
matter of minutes. Once child pornography hits the Internet it is virtually
impossible to ever remove, thus perpetuating the victimization of those
violated beyond their lifetime.”
To combat cyber-exploitation, the ISP has formed the Cyber Crimes and Crimes
Against Children units, whose 14 members are tasked specifically to
investigations of child enticement and the production, dissemination,
advertisement, receipt, and possession of child pornography.
“Troopers interested in this type of work proactively seek out these
highly-skilled, highly-trained, highly-competitive positions, and ultimately
pass rigorous testing and interview phases before being selected,” the ISP
said. “Once assigned to a unit, the officers will undergo many weeks of
training in computer forensics, online investigations, interviewing child
victims, interviewing those that offend against children, and other skill
areas. This training is conducted in Indiana and locations across the United
States that offer the most up to date training for these types of criminal
acts.
Detectives assigned to the Cyber Crimes Unit are issued state-of-the-art
forensic hardware and software to conduct forensically sound examinations of
devices using Windows, Apple, Linux, and other operating systems. Forensic
examiners continually train to keep pace with the newest and most advanced
releases from hardware and software manufacturers. Also at the disposal of
the units is a mobile forensics vehicle in which investigators can conduct
on-scene forensic examinations, allowing them to coordinate the
investigative process with interviews, searches, and other investigative
techniques in a more effective, efficient, and productive manner.
Statistics compiled in 2011:
•The five detectives assigned to the Crimes Against Children Unit (CACU)
performed 140 digital media recovery examinations, evaluated and assigned
1,276 Cyber Tips received from the National Center for Missing and Exploited
Children, conducted investigations resulting in 119 persons being charged in
state or federal court, and held 50 training sessions for law enforcement
and civilian organizations with over 3,200 attendees.
•The six forensic examiners assigned to the Cyber Crimes Unit (CCU) examined
304 computers, 46 loose hard drives, 385 CDs and DVDs, and 159 other pieces
of digital media to include thumb drives, cameras, and flash memory cards.
They also examined 712 cell phones, previewed 260 hard drives, and previewed
1,173 other forms of media.
Leading these efforts is ISP Lt. Chuck Cohen, the Indiana Internet Crimes
Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Commander. Supervisors in the field are
First Sgt. John Richard and Sgt. Marty Metzger.
The ISP Crimes Against Children Unit was formed in November 1997 and the
Cyber Crime Unit in May 1998.
To report a crime involving online child enticement or child pornography,
people are urged to contact their nearest Indiana State Police Post or call
the Indiana State Police Crime Tip Line at (888) 873-1694.
Custom Search