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TESTIMONY OF CEO John Pizzuro, Raven Commander, New Jersey Internet Crimes Against Children (Ret) New Jersey State Police (Ret) for the UNITED STATES SENATE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY Protecting Our Children Online February 14, 2023 Chairman Durbin, Ranking Member Graham, and distinguished Senators, thank you for the opportunity to testify today on Protecting Our Children Online. For me, there is no more significant issue than safeguarding our children, as well as those who protect them from harm. I wish I did not have to be here to testify on this issue because it would mean our children are safe when they go online. The truth is, we have not protected our children sufficiently due to the ever-increasing use of social media apps and the growth of their online lives. Their risk for harm has increased at such a significant pace that shielding them from abuse and exploitation has become untenable. To quote a sentiment shared by thousands of global experts in this space: "We cannot arrest our way out of this problem." Today there are countless victims of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), sextortion, and other exploitative crimes. The sad reality is that we are failing to protect our children from the threats they face online. Those who would protect our youth are overburdened and under-resourced, which makes children vulnerable. Our nation's young people are unable to escape from the bombardment of posts, reels, and online social interaction. A major disadvantage of our global society is that any offender can reach any victim, anywhere in the world, through any app or gaming platform. We live in a world where everyday tasks increasingly are accomplished through apps, from shopping, to making a flight reservation, to —sadly - even children buying drugs. I am here today as the CEO of Raven, an advocacy group comprised of 14 professionals, including nine retired Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAO) Task Force Commanders, who have committed their lives to the advocacy and protection of children. The Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program (ICAO program) helps state and local law enforcement agencies develop an effective response to technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation and Internet crimes against children. The ICAC program is a national network of 61 coordinated task forces, with at least one in each state, representing more than 4,700 federal, state, and local law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies. These agencies are engaged in both proactive and reactive investigations, forensic investigations, and criminal prosecutions. This ICAC program also encompasses training and technical assistance, victim services, and community education.i 1 The ICAC Task Force program was developed in 1998 response to the increasing number of children and teenagers using the Internet,the proliferation of child sexual abuse images available electronically,and heightened online activity by predators seeking unsupervised contact with potential underage victims.The Providing Resources,