YNOT – The Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection had an exceptionally busy month in October, coping with an upsurge in reports of suspected child pornography through its CP Reporting Hotline.

According to initial figures, ASACP’s hotline processed 5,826 raw reports of suspected child pornography in October, forwarding 928 unique reports to international law enforcement authorities and other entities for further investigation.

Since 2003, ASACP’s data collection and analysis has played an important role in protecting children and businesses. During the period, the non-profit organization has processed more than 620,000 reports of suspected child pornography and forwarded nearly 95,000 confirmed “red flag” incidents to relevant authorities, Executive Director Tim Henning said.

ASACP staff participated in 10 separate special investigations, both domestically and abroad, during October 2011.

“Many people outside the organization do not realize just how much daily activity happens behind the scenes at ASACP,” Henning said. “ASACP is frequently called upon to assist its members and sponsors, the mainstream community and public and government organizations, as well as judicial representatives and law enforcement authorities on an international level.

“Due to the nature of the work the hotline accomplishes, it is usually not possible for ASACP to make public any details surrounding the reports, investigations or assistance it provides,” he continued. “This situation makes it hard for the association to illustrate its ongoing value, since we are not allowed to reveal the pivotal role we play or the actual results we obtain.”

Because online CP distribution trends constantly change, ASACP plans to update its 2010 whitepaper, “ASACP Hotline Report: Online Child Pornography Data and Analysis,” in 2012.

“Since 1996, ASACP has been helping companies around the world to protect children and to protect their businesses,” Henning said. “Our evolving best practices, code of ethics, CP Reporting Hotline and Restricted To Adults website label all play vitally important roles in this regard.”