What Is the "Operation H" Online Child Abuse Investigation Led by New Zealand?
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Authorities said on Wednesday that a global investigation led by New Zealand into online child sexual abuse material uncovered more than 90,000 accounts, resulted in the arrest of hundreds of offenders worldwide, and protected 146 children.

The collection of online imagery was discovered in late 2019 after a New Zealand-based internet service provider raised the alarm, resulting in a two-year investigation dubbed “Operation H.”
The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) of New Zealand, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States, the Australian Federal Police, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency, Europol, and INTERPOL collaborated to identify and investigate individuals linked to the accounts.

“Many people who see this kind of material will go on to physically offend against children,” Tim Houston, manager of the DIA’s digital child exploitation team and lead investigator for Operation H, said in a statement.

“It is critical that we are able to bring them to justice before they cause further harm.”
According to the DIA, approximately 836 cases were investigated internationally and 146 children were safeguarded. In New Zealand, 46 people were arrested, and hundreds more were apprehended abroad, including in the United Kingdom, Canada, Spain, and Slovenia.

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Many of the 450 people arrested by Britain’s National Crime Agency were in positions of trust, including primary schools and nurseries, law enforcement and medical industries, and some religious officials.
“This is not a victimless crime; every time this material is viewed, that child has victimized again,” DIA’s Houston explained.