Sweetie (internet avatar)
Sweetiewas a computer animated child that was created bychildren's rightsorganizationTerre des hommesas asting operation.It was used to lure onlinesexual predatorsinto providingpersonally-identifiable information,so that this information could then be reported to law enforcement agencies.
Background
[edit]In 2013, the Dutch branch of Terre des hommes, noting that efforts to combatchild sex tourismin impoverished countries had resulted in pedophiles instead seeking victims online,[1]joined forces with local advertising agency Lemz that at first preferred to remain anonymous[2]to create the animated, photorealistic image of a 10-year-oldFilipinagirl.
How Sweetie worked
[edit]A 'puppeteer' for Sweetie would enter achat room,claiming to be a ten-year-old Philippine girl.Sexual predatorswould openwebcamconnections with 'her', during which programmers would animate Sweetie as necessary in real time throughmotion capture.[3]As the dialogue between Sweetie and the predator progressed, the predator would make a $20wire transferand provide hisSkypeaddress. Once this information was gathered, the chat with Sweetie would be shut down, and the information was given to the local police orInterpol.[1]
After receiving a letter from the United Nations, the team of the advertising agency Lemz admitted that they were behind this initiative.[4]Strategy director of LemzMark Woerdegave one public interview to the Dutch TV showRTL Late Nightto explain the intervention and to make clear, for security reasons, that they were no longer involved in Terre des hommes, Sweetie or police activities.[5]
Outcome
[edit]During the ten weeks of operation, Sweetie was contacted by more than 20,000 users from 71 countries.[6]Terre des hommes identified 1,000 suspected predators, and passed their names, IP addresses, and social media accounts on toInterpol.[1][7]
The first arrest resulting from Sweetie-gleaned information occurred inBrisbane, Australia,in February 2014;[2]however, Troels Ørting Jørgensen of theEuropean Cybercrime Centrehas expressed concerns that judges may consider Sweetie to have beenentrapment,and thereby ruleinadmissibleany data ultimately sourced to Sweetie.[2]Sweetie led to the arrest of 46 people in Australia.[6]In 2014, an Australian man became the first person to be convicted as a result of the sting operation.[8]
Sweetie has been retired, and "will not be used again".[9]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^abc""Sweetie" Sting: Dutch activists claim to nab 1,000 sex predators using computer-generated "child"".CBS News.2013-11-05.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-05-21.Retrieved2014-06-07.
- ^abcSchweizer, Kristen (2014-04-26)."Avatar Sweetie exposes sex predators".The Age.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-05-21.Retrieved2014-06-07.
- ^"Case Study: Sweetie".D&AD.2014.Archivedfrom the original on 2022-12-30.Retrieved2024-05-31.
- ^"Lemz claims credit for Sweetie".B&T. 2014-02-20.Archivedfrom the original on 2020-08-15.Retrieved2020-11-23.
- ^"RTL Late Night • Voor Mark Woerde was 'Sweetie' een missie"(in Dutch).Archivedfrom the original on 2020-10-31.Retrieved2020-11-23.
- ^abToor, Amar (2014-10-22)."Computer generated girl leads to pedophile conviction in Australia".The Verge.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-06-27.Retrieved2021-06-27.
- ^Crawford, Angus (2013-11-05)."BBC News - Computer-generated 'Sweetie' catches online predators".BBC News.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-07-01.Retrieved2014-06-07.
- ^Crawford, Angus (2014-10-21)."Webcam sex with fake girl Sweetie leads to sentence".BBC News.Retrieved2021-06-27.
- ^Yenko, Athena (2013-11-06)."Webcam Child Sex Tourism: Filipino Avatar" Sweetie "Entraps Paedophiles".International Business Times.Archived fromthe originalon 2014-06-07.Retrieved2014-06-07.
