Criminal organisations such as the 'Ndrangheta mafia in the southern Calabria region are cashing in on Internet child pornography particularly on encrypted, or 'dark net' sites according to an investigative report published by ANSA on Thursday.
"Now files have been given a market value ranging from tens to thousands of dollars depending on age, race and sexual act," said criminologist Roberta Bruzzone.
"Mafia organisations such as the 'Ndrangheta have understood the business," she continued. Police have received 200 reports of Internet-related child pornography since the start of the year against 344 in 2013, according to the ANSA report. Further since January 2014 they have blacklisted over 1,700 encrypted sites dealing specifically in child porn, trading not only images but also children to be abused. Investigations are being coordinated by the national centre for combatting online child pornography, which carried out its first successful operation with 10 arrests and the identification of three seven-year-old victims three months ago.
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