Coronavirus fuels cybersex trafficking fears for children in South-East Asia

Residents walk along a street as a police vehicle patrols the streets of Tondo, Manila, Philippines. The global spread of cheap, high-speed Internet and the rise in mobile phone ownership has fuelled cybersex trafficking in recent years, with children from Thailand to the Philippines being exploited over livestreams for paying clients worldwide. — Reuters

BANGKOK/PHNOM PENH: Cybersex traffickers are likely to exploit the coronavirus pandemic to target more children across South-East Asia for online sexual abuse, child rights activists said on March 26.

The global spread of cheap, high-speed Internet and the rise in mobile phone ownership has fuelled cybersex trafficking in recent years, with children from Thailand to the Philippines being exploited over livestreams for paying clients worldwide.