Gardaí identify 55 child victims of online sexual abuse in Ireland since July last year

A new report says criminals are leveraging AI to produce hyper-realistic 'deepfake' images and videos to manipulate or blackmail children for the purposes of online sexual abuse

Gardaí said financial sexual extortion, whereby perpetrators coerce minors into sharing explicit material and subsequently demand payment to prevent its release, has emerged as 'a rapidly escalating threat'. 

Fifty-five child victims of online sexual abuse have been identified and safeguarded in Ireland over the past 15 months, gardaí have said.

Since July of last year, the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau (GNCCB) specialist victim identification team has been reviewing child sexual abuse and exploitation videos and images extracted from electronic devices in an effort to identify victims in Ireland and internationally.

In a report on the ongoing investigation, published on Friday, the team said they have also tentatively identified a further 52 possible victims of abuse and provided information on each to local, European, and global enforcement agencies.

As part of its investigations, the team says it utilised "a range of resources that help identify known child sexual abuse content, and also enable it to highlight new material where a possible victim can be saved from abuse".

Over the past year, the team has reviewed more than 30,000 videos and photographs defined as Child Sex Abuse Material (CSAM), and has uploaded them to Interpol’s International Child Sexual Exploitation (ICSE) database. Included within this figure are almost 900 files involving previously unknown victims.

The report says the "online threat landscape targeting children is growing in both scale and sophistication, presenting unprecedented challenges for law enforcement", with risks now extending beyond traditional concerns such as online grooming, cyberbullying, and exposure to inappropriate content, to encompass "more insidious forms of exploitation through social media and gaming platforms".

Financial sexual extortion a 'rapidly escalating threat'

The report also says that criminals are leveraging AI to produce hyper-realistic 'deepfake' images and videos to manipulate or blackmail children for the purposes of online sexual abuse.

It also states that financial sexual extortion, whereby perpetrators coerce minors into sharing explicit material and subsequently demand payment to prevent its release, has emerged as "a rapidly escalating threat".

"Most disturbing is the rise in sadistic online enticement, where violent groups exploit children via mainstream messaging platforms, coercing them into acts of self-harm or abuse while reinforcing psychological control," the report says.

The report also highlighted two case studies to illustrate the type of work being done by the GNCCB's victim identification team.

In August 2024, as a result of material found on a device seized from an Irish suspect, a referral was forwarded to law enforcement officials in Germany. This referral resulted in the identification, location and safeguarding of two children in Germany and the arrest of their father for sexual abuse and exploitation.

Then, in July 2025, as a result of analysis of child sexual abuse material, the GNCCB team, with the support of the Garda National Protective Services Bureau (GNPSB), successfully located and safeguarded three children in Ireland who were being sexually exploited online by a suspect in a different jurisdiction.

Speaking on Friday, GNCCB Detective Superintendent Michael Mullen said all users of electronic devices and online services, particularly children, teenagers, and their parents, "need to be aware of the danger of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse along with the very serious harm that both will cause.

Parents need to realise that such behaviour is happening online on an alarming scale.

Det Supt Mullen said it is "imperative that children and teenagers do not engage with strangers online".

"Don’t ever create and/or share intimate content, don’t give in to blackmail and don’t tolerate any behaviour that would not be tolerated in the offline world in daily physical interactions, just because it occurs online," he said.

"Most importantly, if any child/ teenager is a victim of any unwanted or inappropriate online engagement of a sexual nature, it is imperative that they please talk to someone immediately, whether that is a parent, relative, friend or a member of An Garda Síochána. 

"An Garda Síochána are here to listen and help.

"For parents, my advice is to talk to your child about the online environment, help them understand the dangers, monitor and be aware of your child’s online activities and be available to listen and help if your support is required.”