May 5th is the national day against pedophilia and child pornography, established by law 41 of 2009, to raise public awareness of the serious phenomenon of child abuse. “With the advent of digital technology, these criminal phenomena have taken on new forms, spreading pervasively on a global level,” the police said in a statement. And it is precisely in this area that the Postal Police – the specialist branch of the State Police responsible for preventing and combating cyber crime – exercises its mission.
In 2023, at a national level, a total of 28,355 sites were analyzed by Postal Police specialists: of these, 2,800 were included in the black list of sites containing representations of sexual exploitation of minors. Over 1100 people have been identified and reported for downloading, sharing and exchanging photos and videos of sexual abuse against minors. In this context, the Operational Center for Cyber Security of Western Sicily led by the first director Carmine Mosca is engaged in the fight against online child pornography. The structure, based in Palermo, in the central post office building, also has jurisdiction over Enna, Trapani, Caltanissetta and Agrigento.
In 2023, thousands of gigabytes of files containing child pornography content were seized by the Palermo Postal Police; A total of 475 sites were analyzed by specialists, 41 searches were carried out, 42 people were identified and reported for having downloaded, shared and exchanged photos and videos of sexual abuse against minors, six were arrested in flagrante delicto for possession of large quantities of child pornography material. Unfortunately, the phenomenon is growing.
“Our daily commitment – says Doctor Mosca – is to make the internet a safer space and guarantee users greater awareness and responsibility for the resources they have at their disposal”.
