
On the 18th of February 2021, the Local Commission for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (LCCTHB) Sliven, organized a specialized webinar on "The new dimensions of human trafficking and the risks on the Internet for children in a situation of COVID-19, social isolation and distance learning", with the main strategic objective to build on the interaction and support the network of professionals working daily with children, including in the digital environment.
The event was opened by Mr. Vladimir Drumev, Secretary of LCCTHB Sliven, who welcomed the participants in the webinar and emphasized that the Internet and social networks are among the most commonly used tools for recruiting victims of trafficking, as children are particularly at risk.
The virtual event was attended by 45 experts from all municipalities in the Sliven region - pedagogical advisors, educational mediators, teachers, psychologists, inspectors of the Children's Pedagogical Room - scouts in the Criminal Police Sector, and social workers from the Child Protection Department of the Social Assistance Directorate.
The lecturer in the specialized webinar was Ms. Anotoaneta Vassileva, a long-standing expert in the fight against human trafficking and member of the Group of Experts on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings at the Council of Europe /GRETA/
The event looked in detail at the risks to children on the global web, with a focus on online methods of involvement in human trafficking and the subsequent control of victims via the Internet. It also analyzed children's behavior in a situation of social isolation in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. It focused on children's loneliness and uncontrolled access to the Internet as some of the main risks of unwanted contact on social networks and subsequent exposure to online sexual coercion and extortion.
Topics discussed included the early sexualization of children and their sexualized behavior online, sexting as one of the biggest threats to children related to the exchange of photos and videos with sexual content, online bullying, which can be a method of engaging in sexual exploitation, as well as the risky situations children can get into through online games and chat group apps.
To provide information for possible reporting of all forms of online child sexual abuse and violence, the websites www.safenet.bg and www.cybercrime.bg were presented.
The specialized webinar is realized with the support of the National Commission for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings and the Regional Department of Education Sliven