Borders Conference - Rethinking the Line: The Canada-U.S. Border / Child Pornography on the Internet Session
Appendix III: Presentation Materials – Max Taylor (continued)
Slide 15
Typology (probably illegal)
- Level 6 Explicit Erotic Posing
- Level 7 Explicit sexual activity
- Level 8 Assault
- Level 9 Gross Assault
- Level 10 Sadistic/bestiality
Slide 16
Dilemmas
- Legal definitions do not necessarily include all sexually arousing photographs
- Problem of level 3 pictures (surreptitiously taken photographs)
Slide 17
Typology - other factors in extent and severity of sexual victimisation
- size of collection and quality of organisation
- new/ private material
- age of child
Slide 18
COPINE Database
- Database takes 2 forms:
- 1. Archive of old pictures (over 15 years)
- 2. Searchable archive of new/recent pictures (new= 10 years old, recent= 10-15 years) collected from daily newsgroup downloads
searchable by text fields
Slide 19
COPINE Database (2)
- Based on daily systematic downloading of all pictures posted to 60+ newsgroups known to carry child pornography
- Focus on levels 6-10 photographs (underestimates more mature 12+ photographs)
- Focus on new photographs
- Large and probably representative sample of publicly available material
Slide 20
COPINE Database (3)
- Extensive record of pictures posted over 3+ years
- Extensive record of nicknames of posters and IP addresses
Slide 21

Slide depicts a screen capture of the database and the summary information collected as part of the COPINE project. Variables shown on the slide are physical attribute of the victim or offender including sex, hair colour, race, hair length, face shape, eye colour, etc. Also, included is a photo of a young girl in a bathing suit with her face blurred for purposes of privacy.
Slide 22
Slide depicts a screen capture of the database and the environment data collected as part of the COPINE project. Variables shown on the slide describe the scene in the photo catalogued including description of scene, scene notes and environment. Also, included is a photo of a young girl in a bathing suit wearing a life jacket on a boat with her face blurred for purposes of privacy.
Slide 23
COPINE Database (4)
- 60,000 + still pictures
- 400 + video clips (5-6 secs. to 20 mins)
- about 43,000 pictures of girls, 18,000 pictures of boys
- about 7% of girl photographs (levels 7+) are new
- about 26% of boy photographs (level 7+) are new
Slide 24
Age range: new/recent
Presented is a table indicating the percentage of girls and boys in still images by the age of the child.
For girls 10% of images are of girls between ages 0 and 2 years old, 21% between 3 and 5 years old, 21% between 6 and 8 years old, 41% between 9 and 12 years old, 7% between 13 & 15 years old and none between 15 & 18 years old.
For boys 1% of images are of boys between ages 0 and 2 years old, 3% between 3 and 5 years old, 19% between 6 and 8 years old, 56% between 9 and 12 years old, 14% between 13 & 15 years old and 7% between 15 & 18 years old.
Slide 25
Race of children: new/recent
Presented is a table indicating the percentage of girls and boys in still images by the race of the child.
For girls 70% of images are of girls described as White, 23% described as Asian, 7% described as Hispanic and 0% described as Black
For boys 90% of images are of boys described as White, 6% described as Asian, 3% described as Hispanic and 1% described as Black
Slide 26
Ages of children: new/recent video clips
Presented is a table indicating the percentage of girls and boys in new/recent video clips by the age of the child.
For girls 1% of new/recent video clips are of girls between ages 0 and 2 years old, 4% between 3 and 5 years old, 39% between 6 and 8 years old, 56% between 9 and 12 years old, none between 13 & 18 years old.
For boys none of new/recent video clips are of boys between ages 0 and 8 years old, 92% between 9 and 12 years old, 8% between 13 & 15 years old and 0% between 15 & 18 years old.
Slide 27
New photographs (1)
- Downloading approx. 2 new individual children/ month on average - varied and very irregular
- Ages are getting younger (especially girls)
- Domestic quality
- Growth in East European children
Slide 28
New photographs (2)
- Estimate 300 - 350 children included in new/recent category subjected to serious sexual assaults - about 202 boys and 130 girls (individual identities not always clear)
- of the 130 girls, the identities of 12 are known
- of the 202 boys, we are definitely aware of identities of 2, and maybe a further 12 are known
- Date modified: