CBI unearths global child porn racket

NEW DELHI: The CBI on Thursday unearthed a global child pornography racket which was being run on a WhatsApp group where the accused from at least 11 countries shared videos, pictures and other disturbing content related to abuse of minors. The agency arrested the alleged mastermind and main administrator of the WhatsApp group – titled “KidsXXX”- Nikhil Verma, a 20-year-old unemployed youth from

Kannauj

in Uttar Pradesh.


After registering a case of alleged violation of the Information Technology Act, the agency carried out searches in Delhi, Mumbai, Noida and Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh. CBI is investigating the organised nature of the racket and plans to approach the US, China, New Zealand, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Mexico, Kenya, Nigeria and Sri Lanka as some of the accused are from these countries and shared child pornography content.

A case under section 67-B of the Information Technology Act was registered. “We found mobile phones, tablets and laptops containing incriminating material depicting children in obscene, indecent and sexually explicit acts,” said CBI spokesperson Abhishek Dayal.