The psychology of online child sexual abuse offenders and their behaviours, 14 May 2025
Provides a unique insight into the motivations, drivers and behaviours of those who engage in online child sexual abuse.
Aims to provide a contemporary snapshot of the current threat to help inform the work of operational investigators.
Led by recognised international expert Michael Sheath, who is a trainer on the Europol Combating the Online Sexual Exploitation of Children (COSEC) course.
Michael has been working with child sexual abuse offenders for 38 years first as a probation officer and then as Principal Practitioner at The Lucy Faithfull Foundation.
Mindset and motivation
The workshop will consider the mindset and motivation of men involved in collecting and sharing Child Sexual Abuse material, as well as those engaging in online grooming and solicitation.
These fall into three categories:
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Downloaders
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Solicitors
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Groomers
The workshop will challenge traditional stereotypes around paedophilia and look at the evolving and complex threat picture. We will also consider how this criminality often overlaps with other criminal behaviour.
Psychological drivers
The workshop will consider the links between mainstream pornography and CSAM. It will also explore the psychological drivers behind viewing CSAM and engaging children for sexual purposes online, the 'ideology' of men involved in contact child abuse and its overlap with CSAM viewers.
The workshop will offer a framework for interviewing suspects. The 'CSAM Cycle' considers the direction of travel of CSAM viewers, and how this can be used, during investigations, to explore risk, insight, and capacity to change.
Michael will also speak about contemporary considerations around managing families where downloading has been discovered. There are huge concerns in law enforcement about ‘secondary harms’ (suicide in suspects, trauma for partners and children) which need to be considered as part of an investigation.
• Held online Via Teams.
• Certificates of CPD available
HOW TO BOOK
Cost: £199.00 + VAT (GBP) per delegate (LEA and Government Agency rate). £199.99 + VAT (Industry rate).
Group bookings: We offer various discounts for group bookings depending on numbers, please contact us for details.
Booking: Please send the delegates name(s), email address(es) and purchase order (made out to The Investigator) to booking@the-investigator.co.uk or telephone +44(0)844 660 8707 for further information.
Payment can be made by PayPal/debit/credit card (corporate card fees apply + 3%). The meeting link will be sent out 7 days before the event.