Interpreting the Intentions of Internet Predators: An Examination of Online Predatory Behavior

Abstract

Internet predators are finding new ways to prey on the vulnerabilities of youth in chat rooms and lure them into sexual activities. This study will examine three chat room transcripts between adult predators and adult volunteers of the group "Perverted Justice" posing as youth. These conversations will be analyzed to interpret the underlying meanings behind the words and actions of the predators and how they affect potential victims. The purpose of this article is to provide insight to the reader of the increased amount of child sexual abuse on the Internet, the often-blatant tactics used by online predators to pursue this abuse, and how they are continuing to successfully manipulate children with them.

Offense Processes of Online Sexual Grooming and Abuse of Children Via Internet Communication Platforms

“…Offenders who employed a direct approach used more forceful strategies, such as blackmail/threats, insults and peer pressure. Another strategy apparent across cases was to show victims pornographic material, which served to normalize offenders' behavior and desensitize victims to sexual activity and the material depicted, with the aim to lower their inhibitions, overcome their resistance and achieve their compliance (Durkin, 1997;Marcum, 2007;O'Connell, 2003). Although most of these strategies have previously been reported to be employed by offenders, both in the context of sexual abuse cases in the physical world OFFENSE PROCESSES OF ONLINE CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE 25 (e.g., Craven et al, 2006;McAlinden, 2006) and online (e.g., Cybertip.ca, 2012;Malesky, 2007;Marcum, 2007;O'Connell, 2003;Whittle et al, 2014b), the detailed qualitative analysis of such interactions facilitates an additional perspective on the nature and extent of offenders' use thereof.…”

“…While the same dataset was used and a thematic analysis conducted, the two papers cover distinct aspects that were apparent within sexually exploitative interactions between offenders and children. The former specifically focuses on the individuals who use Internet communication platforms to meet and interact with children 3 These represent real-world data in the form of naturally-occurring conversations between an adult and a child under the age of 16 years, who is not posed by an adult in the form of undercover police officers (e.g., Briggs et al, 2011;Grosskopf, 2010;Krone, 2005;Malesky, 2007) or private volunteers (e.g., Marcum, 2007;O'Connell, 2003;Williams, Elliott, & Beech, 2013). OFFENSE PROCESSES OF ONLINE CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE 7 for sexual purposes, as well as their modus operandi, with an emphasis on their underlying motivation and the range of strategies they employ.…”

Sexualität im Internet

“…Kenntnisse darüber, wie Missbrauchstäter sich im Internet Kindern nähern, können dazu beitragen, diese zu überführen sowie Kinder und Eltern für auffällige Verhaltensweisen zu sensibilisieren (vgl. Marcum 2007). Unerwünschte sexuelle Annäherungen lassen sich im Internet nicht selten besser bekämpfen und verfolgen als außerhalb des Netzes, sei es durch die betroffenen Internet-Nutzer selbst (z. B.…”

Optimal Foraging Theory’s Application to Internet Sex Offender Search Behavior: A Theoretical Model for Computer Forensic Investigations

“…Prior research on Internet sex offenders has been of limited help to computer forensic investigators, and has focused mainly on exploratory studies examining the characteristics of Internet sex offenders [2][3][4][5][6][7], their targets [8][9][10] and what characteristics differentiate between Internet sex offenders and traditional sex offenders [11]. There is an absence of research explaining the search strategies of Internet sex offenders.…”