Recent estimates have indicated that the majority of child sexual abuse material is now exchanged via non-commercial channels, specifically public peer-to-peer platforms, such as Gnutella, eDonkey and eMule. Private peer-to-peer networks are often used by mid-level offenders who establish closed groups to exchange encrypted files. Anywhere from 7.5 to 24 per cent of child sexual abuse material is currently exchanged via commercial channels. As credit card payments are known by most offenders to risk identification, new and therefore more valuable, abuse material has become a sort of currency in itself, being often used as “payment” for access to other material. While commercial distribution has not been completely eradicated, a trend in decreasing identification of available commercial sexual abuse material may also be due to commercial distributors moving to new platforms or “dark web” environments such as Tor.90 Increased profits for criminal enterprises Advances in ICTs have enabled criminal enterprises that sexually abuse and exploit children to lower operating costs and increase profits. Prior to the widespread availability and use of ICTs, producers of child sexual abuse material had to employ expensive filming and copying equipment, and ship videotapes or CD-ROM copies for distribution and to produce advertising material accordingly. Due to the public nature of such advertisements, offenders used cryptic language and terms so as not to alert law enforcement authorities, which often served to restrict the distribution and profit of such material. In the current technological context, ICTs markedly reduce the costs and efforts at all stages of the production and distribution of child sexual abuse material. While digital equipment creates a comparatively cheap and easily accessible means of producing and widely distributing child sexual abuse material through the Internet, commercial spam campaigns reduce the challenges and costs related to advertising, enabling child abuse and exploitation networks to quickly expand the scope and scale of their activities. Once directly connected to customers and consumers, providers can continuously advertise additional illicit materials in open and explicit language and keep in touch freely, thus enabling them to generate greater revenue from their activities. 90 EUROPOL. European Cybercrime Centre (EC3), 2013. Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children Online: A Strategic Assessment. Available at https://www.europol.europa.eu/sites/ default/files/publications/efc_strategic_assessment__public_version .pdf. The creation of websites has also become significantly easier in recent years, such that providers of child sexual abuse material no longer have to rely on and hire HTMLprogrammers and can instead establish a site themselves, either on the public web or, more commonly, on Tor or dark web. With even less effort and expense, and some basic precautions, child sexual abuse material providers can employ photo-sharing, banner advertising and social networking applications to host graphic child sexual abuse content. The cost-saving effects of ICTs also facilitate child commercial sex trafficking operations. For instance, traffickers are able to recruit, advertise, organize and communicate primarily, or even exclusively, via mobile phone or devices such as tablets, effectively streamlining their activities and expanding their networks. At the same time, operators of illicit businesses are frequently able to charge travelling offenders more money for the service of facilitating encounters at almost any time, and on short notice—a “service” which is facilitated by ICTs.91 Reducing offenders’ risk of detection The use of ICTs in the sexual abuse and exploitation of children has also reduced the risk of detection. The use of mobile phones and devices, e-mail and messaging applications can enable perpetrators to hide their identities and obfuscate their activities. Potential offenders can utilize disposable phones or pre-paid SIM cards that, in some countries, do not require any form of registration, to carry out any form of child abuse and exploitation. E-mail accounts may also be registered using false identities, multiple proxies, and public wireless hotspots, making it extremely challenging to link an account-registration with a particular individual. Additionally, many Internet cafés offer reasonable anonymity, as they do not require identification to log on to computers, do not use monitoring systems of any kind, and are unable to enforce codes of conduct.92 ICTs can also expand the territorial range and reach of child sexual abuse material distribution, as such material may 91 Hughes, D., 2002. “The Use of New Communications and Information Technologies for Sexual Exploitation of Women and Children”, Hastings Women’s Law Journal 13:129-148; Trinidad, A.C. 2005. Child Pornography in the Philippines. UP Center for Integrative and Development Studies/UNICEF Manila. Pp. 31-37. 92 U.S. Department of Justice, 2010. “The National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction. A Report to Congress”, Pp. 25-26; see also Armstrong H. L., Forde, P.J., 2003. Internet anonymity practices in computer crime. Information Management & Computer Security 11:209-215. 18 STUDY ON THE EFFECTS OF NEW INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES ON THE ABUSE AND EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN