Digital Desk: According
to people familiar with the development, the Central Bureau of Investigation
(CBI) launched a major operation codenamed "Operation Megh-Chakra" on
Saturday against the circulation and sharing of child sexual abuse material
online, conducting raids at around 56 locations in 20 states and union
territories.
They added that the
operation was launched based on Interpol inputs. The original information about
individuals involved in the alleged posting and distribution of child sexual
exploitation material (CSEM) via various social media platforms was shared by
Interpol, New Zealand, and was passed on to the CBI via Singapore.
The CBI conducted a similar
operation, "Operation Carbon," in November 2021, when raids were
conducted at 76 locations across the country against 83 people, and several
people were arrested.
The CBI also serves as
the nodal agency for Interpol, which maintains an International Child Sexual
Exploitation (ICSE) image and video database that allows investigators from
member countries to share data on cases of child sexual abuse.
ICSE has been used by
64 countries, including India, to identify 23,500 survivors and 10,752
offenders from the database's 2.3 million images and videos. It allows for data
sharing, both in an open network that all countries can access and with
specific countries.
Since 2019, the CBI has also established a special unit
called Online Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Prevention/Investigation
(OCSAE) to investigate cases of online child sexual abuse and exploitation. In
addition to receiving various references/information, the unit investigates
various offenses involving online child sexual abuse and exploitation. It
compiles and investigates information received from embassies and foreign
federal investigation agencies about organized rackets engaged in online child
sexual abuse and exploitation.
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