Our field partner in the Philippines, Honor 1000, conducted an online safety seminar and distributed OSAEC (Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children) information and activity booklets to the 146 beneficiaries of the Manila Slum Program.

The majority of these children already own and have easy access to their social media accounts. The majority of these children already own and have easy access to their social media accounts. Their safety is critical in our fight against cyber sex crimes.

During the seminar, two of them shared that they received message requests from strangers. One stranger even asked them to “send pics”, which is actually sexual in nature and a direct request for nude pictures. Living in the slums puts them most at risk of online sexual exploitation because of the lure of easy money.

Living in the slums puts them most at risk of online sexual exploitation because of the lure of easy money. Aside from conducting the online safety seminar for their parents, we hope that by teaching them to protect their online information, recognize potential dangers, and seek help when needed, we are also empowering these children to protect themselves.