These people were arrested for “downloading and broadcasting” of child pornography equipment in eastern France, after the discovery of more than a million photos and videos.
37 people were arrested in the Grand-Est and the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, suspected of “download and disseminate child pornography”.
Since November, 270 gendarmes, who operate under the authority of the French armed forces, mainly in rural areas and small towns, have been working on the investigation. Among the investigators, 36 are specialized in hunting cybercrime.
According to a gendarmerie press release, more than a million child pornographic photos and videos were discovered during a series of searches.
The authorities have seized a total of 60 computers, 290 hard drives, 27 mobile phones, 8 tablets and 4 cameras. Weapons and drugs have also been discovered in four places.
A similar operation took place in March 2023 in the region, and 17 people were arrested for “downloading and distributing” of child pornographic equipment.
The reinforced law and the penalties increased in 2024
Last year, France strengthened its pornography legislation by adopting in May the Sren law (“secure and regulate the digital space”).
This law stipulates that the platforms have 24 hours to withdraw child pornographic content after reporting to the police. The owners of platforms are also liable to a prison sentence of up to a year, as well as a fine of 250,000 euros, which increases in the event of recurrence.
Under the new French law, websites and video sharing platforms must also set up an age verification system, in order to ensure that pornographic content is in no way accessible to minors.
Although France and many other European governments have taken measures to combat online child pornography The Internet Watch Foundationbased in the United Kingdom, warns against another disturbing phenomenon: the rapid increase in images and videos of sexual assault on children generated by artificial intelligence.
