How To Respond: Child Sexual Abuse Material

Recognise, Respond, Support:

Child Sexual Abuse Material

What is it?

Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) refers to any sexualised or exploitative images, videos or live-streamed content of children or young people under 18.

It is illegal under New Zealand law to create, share, or even possess this material - regardless of intent - as it could be considered objectionable.

Sometimes children may come across it accidentally while searching online or through social media algorithms. In other cases, offenders may attempt to share or request this kind of content as part of grooming.

Seeing or being connected to this material can cause distress, guilt, or confusion for young people.

If you, your child or someone you know has encountered such material, support is available and it's important to seek help and advice; you are not alone.

Sexting and nudes

Some young people send nude or nearly nude images or videos of themselves to others. This is often called sexting.

Under New Zealand law, sexualised images or videos of anyone under 18 are considered objectionable material. This means that creating, possessing, or sharing these images (even if a young person has taken them of themselves) may technically break the law.

It’s also important for young people to understand that sharing someone else’s nude image or video when they are under 18 is considered distributing child sexual abuse material (CSAM). This applies even if the image was originally shared consensually.

Law enforcement agencies are primarily focused on people who knowingly create, possess, or distribute CSAM. However, young people can still be at risk of breaking the law, which is why it’s important they understand the potential harms and consequences of sharing these kinds of images.

Recognising the signs

These may be indicators that something is happening for your young person online, or they have seen something upsetting:

Your child seems distressed after being online or deletes content suddenly
Mentions of someone sending or asking for “secret” or "private" pictures
Trying to hide online activity or new connections, or friends
Discovery of inappropriate or intimate material on their device

What to do

Stay calm
- Avoid anger or blame; your child needs reassurance, safety and support
Support your child’s wellbeing
- They may feel scared, guilty or embarrassed -reassure them they did the right thing by telling you
Do not share or forward the material
- Even for evidence - it’s illegal and could be considered objectionable under New Zealand law
Note what happened
- Record details like the platform, username, or specific URL link
Report to Netsafe
- Contact Netsafe for immediate advice and removal support. Netsafe will support victims to try to get content removed from the internet, help identify the organisations best placed to support victims, and advise where to report CSAM so that offenders can be identified and prosecuted
- Also contact Police (105) and the Department of Internal Affairs if the material involves known or suspected exploitation

Tips to connect and prevent further harm

Depending on the age and stage of your child you might:

Talk about safe online spaces and that it’s never OK for anyone to share, ask or seek sexual or inappropriate content of children
Use clear but age-appropriate language and talk about body safety and consent
Acknowledge them for speaking up or showing you something that felt inappropriate or wrong
Discuss how sharing or viewing sexualised images of minors - even peers - can cause harm and is against the law
Explore ways they can respond if someone sends or requests explicit material
Reinforce that telling a trusted adult is the right step, even if they feel embarrassed
Provide avenues for them to access support services, like Netsafe or Youthline