WASHINGTON, D.C., Feb. 19, 2025 – Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a crucial hearing titled “Children’s Safety in the Digital Era: Strengthening Protections and Addressing Legal Gaps.” The hearing, presided over by Chairman Senator Grassley, focused on the growing concerns surrounding children’s safety online.
“In today’s digital era, our young people face risks that previous generations couldn’t have imagined. Even though technology brings amazing opportunities for education and growth, it also opens the door to new dangers that we must confront. This isn’t the first hearing we’ve had on this issue. And unfortunately, it probably won’t be the last,” Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) opened with a powerful statement.
Ranking Member Senator Durbin recounted a previous hearing a little over a year ago where CEOs of major tech platforms were called to testify under oath. This led to some companies implementing child safety improvements, though Durbin stressed that these measures were insufficient. Despite unanimous committee and strong bipartisan support, tech companies have strongly opposed these bills, pointing clearly to the need for tech accountability.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) emphasized the alarming rise in child sexual abuse material (CSAM) reports, which surged from 415,650 in 2012 to over 32 million in 2022 according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).
“We are doing everything we can to push legislation to protect children and support those who protect them. Something so simple should be a lot easier. I know persistence is the key so here’s to keeping at it,” said John Pizzuro, CEO of Raven and an End OSEAC Coalition member, following his expert witness testimony about the law enforcement perspective on the issue and the need to pass legislation urgently.
The committee discussed potential future actions to strengthen protections for children online, including more robust legal frameworks and increased accountability for tech companies. The hearing revisited previous legislative attempts to hold tech companies accountable for the harms caused to children and underscored the urgent need for comprehensive bipartisan support for measures to safeguard children in the digital age.
“We commend the Senate Judiciary Committee for convening this critical hearing on CSAM with expert witnesses,” said Coco Lammers, ChildFund International and Chair of the End OSEAC Coalition. “The Committee has recognized that advancing protections for children online is indeed a matter of ‘life and death.’ We look forward to collaborating with Congress to pass legislation such as the SHIELD Act, Take It Down Act, KOSA, and further reforms to Section 230 like the EARN IT Act to ensure the safety of children online.”
About the End OSEAC Coalition
The End Online Sexual Exploitation and Abuse of Children (OSEAC) Coalition is a U.S. advocacy coalition that aims to improve U.S. government policies and programs to better prevent and address online sexual exploitation and abuse of children and provide appropriate support to survivors. Learn more about our mission to #ProtectKidsOnline: endoseac.org.
