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Professional Identification, Trauma-Informed Practice, and Referral

The Scale

• 275,000+ URLs removed by IWF in 2024
• Self-generated imagery: now the majority of new CSAM
• Sextortion: +300% reported to NCA 2020-24
• AI-generated CSAM: growing, illegal, difficult to detect

Professional Identification

• School: withdrawal, device anxiety, unexplained gifts, missed school
• Health: unexplained injury, fearfulness, presenting without carer
• Youth work: new older contacts, missing overnight, money
• Trust your professional instinct — you don't need certainty to refer

Trauma-Informed Disclosure Practice

• Victims minimise, deny, and recant — this is normal trauma response
• Trauma affects memory: inconsistency does not mean lying
• ABE guidance: listen, don't lead, document accurately
• What to say: 'I believe you. It's not your fault. I'm going to help you.'

The Referral Pathway

• 1. First disclosure: DSL immediately
• 2. DSL: assess, decide, refer to CEOP/police/LADO
• 3. Multi-agency safeguarding response (police, social care)
• 4. Ongoing: victim support, prosecution, safeguarding plan

AI and Emerging Threats

• AI-generated CSAM: illegal, growing, used on dark web forums
• Deepfakes: real children, synthetic abuse — devastating for victims
• Synthetic grooming personas: AI 'friends' targeting real children
• Legal framework has kept pace — professional practice must too

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Know your duty. Know the pathway. Use both.