Ukraine was granted candidate status for EU membership amid Russia's large-scale, unjustified aggression, and despite all the challenges — continues its European integration process. Among the commitments on the path to EU membership is creating a safe digital environment, especially for children. This is a shared responsibility of both the state and the public, as it’s not just about aligning our practices and legislation with European standards, but also fostering a culture of awareness, responsibility, and collaboration.

One year ago, the NGOs Docudays and Magnolia launched the nationwide information campaign Sexual Violence on the Internet: How to Protect Children. Documentaries, lectures, and expert discussions teach how to recognise risks, effectively counteract them, support children, and implement effective mechanisms for punishing offenders. This is particularly timely as the scale of the issue continues to grow: in 2022, the International Hotline Network INHOPE confirmed the presence of illegal sexual content in 402,000 media files, while in 2024, the number rose to over 1.6 million, spread across 84 countries. In 2024, Ukraine joined INHOPE, and the StopCrime portal was launched to report online child sexual abuse materials. This year, following the example of EU countries, three NGOs — Magnolia, Docudays, and La Strada Ukraine — launched the Safe Internet Centre, which focuses on prevention, response, and support for victims of cybercrime.

During the discussion, we will examine and analyse the effectiveness of international practices in combating cybercrime against children and what the digital space should look like according to European standards. How does the war impact the vulnerability of Ukrainian children to criminal acts and manipulation? What challenges do law enforcement agencies face during investigations? And what changes need to be implemented in Ukraine’s child protection and cybersecurity systems to align more closely with the results achieved by European Union countries?

Oleksii Sydorenko, Head of the Department for Combating Violence Against Children at the Magnolia NGO

Mariana Hevko, psychologist and expert at the Sexual Violence on the Internet: How to Protect Children information campaign

Moderator: 
Anastasiia Bahalika, journalist and director of the Human Rights Department at the NGO DOCUDAYS.

Organisers: NGO Docudays, The Docuclub Network