How CSAM Fuels Ongoing Abuse

Content Warning: Graphic descriptions of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) file names. In this episode of 'One in Ten,' host Teresa Huizar interviews Dr. Ted Cross of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign about how child sexual abuse material (CSAM) reflects and perpetuates ongoing abuse. Cross explains why CSAM replaces “child pornography,” emphasizing that its creation requires contact abuse and its dissemination retraumatizes victims for years. To study CSAM without viewing traumatic content or violating privacy, his team partnered with the Child Rescue Coalition and analyzed nearly 3,000 highly descriptive filenames as a proxy for content. Findings included a predominance of videos, victims across all ages (including infants), a large share depicting ages 5–12, and common incest/familial cases (over 40%) that tended to involve more severe abuse. Filenames referencing children of color were more likely to include penetration. Cross urges CACs and MDTs to investigate possible online abuse in contact cases, secure devices, and strengthen partnerships with state ICAC task forces. Time Stamps Time Topic 00:00 Episode Introduction 01:26 Meet Dr Ted Cross 02:48 What CSAM Means 04:10 Who Produces CSAM 05:30 Ethical Study Design 06:50 Filenames As Proxy Data 10:08 Victim Demographics 11:50 Incest And Severity 12:52 Penetration And Harm 14:27 Practice Implications 16:19 Trauma And Disclosure 18:25 Policy And Prevention 19:34 Future Research Directions 22:25 Final Takeaways 23:52 Closing And Resources Resources Child Rescue Coalition Characteristics of Child Sexual Abuse Material in Peer-to-Peer Networks and Predictors of its Severity: Insights From Filenames - Theodore P. Cross, Elizabeth M. Cross, Camille Cooper, Daphne Pellegrino, Glen Pounder, Stefan Turkheimer, Simon Bailey, 2025 Support the show Did you like this episode? Please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts.