FIFTY-FIVE CHILDREN in Ireland have been identified by garda specialist units as victims of online sexual abuse in the past fifteen months, with 39 victims identified in 2025 alone. 

A specialist garda unit known as the Victim Identification Team has been investigating images and videos of child sexual abuse and exploitation since July 2024 in an effort to identify victims in Ireland and globally. 

One senior garda has said that sexual abuse of children online is happening at an “alarming scale”. 

Gardaí say that offenders are often using AI to produce hyper-realistic deep-fake images and videos to manipulate or blackmail children.

Financial sexual extortion has also emerged as a rapidly escalating threat, where perpetrators coerce minors into sharing explicit material and subsequently demand payment to prevent its release. These offenders are driven primarily by financial gain, making them more difficult to identify and prosecute.

Detective Superintendent Michael Mullen warned that that parents and children need to understand the risks in being online.

“Children and teenagers who have an electronic device with uncontrolled access to the online environment need to be aware of the danger of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse along with the very serious harm that both will cause. Parents need to realise that such behaviour is happening online on an alarming scale.”

The Victim Identification Team has reviewed more than 30,000 videos and photographs defined as child sexual abuse material and uploaded them to an Interpol database in just over one year – including almost 900 files which involve previously unknown victims.

Detective Chief Superintendent Colm Noonan said that the work is focused on identifying victims and getting concrete evidence which can help with prosecutions. 

Gardaí have a commitment, he said, to “placing the welfare of the child at the centre of every investigation and ensuring that no victim remains invisible.”

This report follows research by CyberSafeKids published today, which found that one third of children between the ages of eight and twelve have access to screens “whenever they want”. 

“If any child/teenager is a victim of any unwanted or inappropriate online engagement of a sexual nature, it is imperative that they please talk to someone immediately, whether that is a parent, relative, friend or a member of An Garda Síochána. An Garda Síochána are here to listen and help” Mullen said.

“For parents, my advice is to talk to your child about the online environment, help them understand the dangers, monitor and be aware of your child’s online activities and be available to listen and help if your support is required.”