INHOPE member hotlines will be key players in the Global Standard project going forward and will be the initial users of the ontology.

ZiuZ and INHOPE will be adding a Global Standard workflow to ICCAM to compliment the current notice and takedown process of hotlines. Participating hotlines will classify the material according to the ontology defined in the Global Standard (specifically what is in the image and not only illegality according to INTERPOL or national law where it is hosted) and consequently hashed with ICCAM’s improved hashing technology. The workflow will allow for the vetting of material to increase the accuracy of the created hash set, and in the future allow for translation between jurisdictions.

The technical solution as a part of this project will improve and develop the following core functionalities in ICCAM:

• Improvement of ICCAM’s hashing technology based on recommended research
• Expanded workflow in ICCAM to allow for content assessment in line with Global Standard ontology both through UI and API
• Improvement of ICCAM’s processing functionalities and user-friendliness

What will happen next for hotlines under this project?

The ontology as it currently stands will be shared with hotlines for written feedback on the categories and definitions. This feedback will be discussed with experts in Ontology Sub-group and the first finalised version of the ontology will be available by March 2023. From January – March 2023, INHOPE will be collecting the national legislation categories per hotline to help inform the translation matrix. The ontology categories will be inserted into ICCAM as of July 2023 to begin the annotation of material by participating hotlines, and training sessions for analysts will be running throughout the year.

What is the potential impact for member hotlines?

Hotline analysts

• Potential for increase of matched material in the future, no need to see it and classify it again
• Continuation of assessing CSAM images & videos
• Improved understanding of exchanged data by including national legislative categories into ICCAM

Hotline managers

• More granular data on what’s hosted in the country and what analysts are classifying
• More granular data on what is reported in the country
• Potential to translate hashes to hashlists of other countries (LEAs, hotlines, industry)
• Machine Learning potential following national legislation

Hotlines in general

• Fully annotated hash lists per country
• Resource that hotlines can use in collaboration with LEAs and industry
• Hash database on INHOPE level that can be combined & enriched from other hash lists
• Better positioning of hotlines & INHOPE network in the fight against CSAM online

If you have any questions about the Global Standard project and the ontology, please contact globalstandard@inhope.org