Prevention initiatives attempt to prevent people from developing or acting on a sexual interest in children. INHOPE’s network of hotlines work every day to get Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) removed from the internet so prevention initiatives are an important complement to the work we do.

What are the goals of this kind of prevention initiative?

Two of the ultimate goals of prevention efforts are: reducing CSAM consumption and reducing contact offences.

• CSAM consumption is considered as the viewing or downloading of any images or videos that show a child engaged in or depicted as being engaged in explicit sexual activity.
• Contact offences are those which involve direct contact of a sexual nature with a child.

Another goal of prevention initiatives is to support the wellbeing of those living with sexual feelings towards children but who are resisting the desire to act on them by offending in either of the ways mentioned above.

Different levels of prevention

Prevention initiatives are defined according to three levels: primary, secondary, and tertiary.

• Primary prevention: Initiatives are directed at the population at large with the goal of preventing the development of sexually abusive norms developing in our communities or trying to tackle those which might exist.
• Secondary Prevention: Initiatives are directed towards groups who are at risk of consuming CSAM or performing contact offences. They detect problematic behaviours and offer opportunities for early intervention to prevent individuals from offending.
• Tertiary Prevention: Initiatives are directed at those individuals who have already offended and seek to prevent recidivism.
  
  

Existing facilities and services

Stop it Now! is an international prevention project with centres in the USA, UK and Ireland, and the Netherlands and Belgium. They address sexual abuse through social awareness and a helpline to listen, offer advice on what to do or who to contact, and assess the risks and the steps available.

Prevent It uses a therapist-assisted cognitive behavioural psychotherapy (CBT) programme based on a new manual called Prevent it. Currently in its trial phase, this specific CBT program consists of eight short weekly modules conducted online. The main aim of Prevent It is to stop consumption of CSAM.

Czechoslovakian Paedophile Community (ČEPEK) is an online forum to support young people who feel their sexuality is or could be aimed at children. The website shares personal life stories and experiences to demonstrate that it is possible to live a happy life and not hurt anyone, and a warning of the consequences if people do act on their sexual feelings. The goal is to prevent its bearers causing unnecessary harm to themselves or their surroundings and violating social norms and laws.

To learn more about prevention and find out what resources are available in your country, visit our prevention page.