Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program

Overview

The Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program (ICAC program) helps state and local law enforcement agencies develop an effective response to technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation and Internet crimes against children. This help encompasses forensic and investigative components, training and technical assistance, victim services, and community education.

The program was developed in 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. OJJDP created the ICAC Task Force Program under the authority of the fiscal year (FY) 1998 Justice Appropriations Act, Public Law 105–119. The Providing Resources, Officers, and Technology to Eradicate Cyber Threats to Our Children Act ("the PROTECT Act") of 2008, (P.L. 110-401, codified at 42 USC 17601, et seq.), authorized the ICAC program through FY 2013. On November 2, 2017, the Providing Resources, Officers, and Technology to Eradicate Cyber Threats to (PROTECT) Our Children Act of 2017 was signed into law, reauthorizing the ICAC Task Force Program through FY 2022.

The ICAC program is a national network of 61 coordinated task forces 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. By helping state and local agencies to develop effective, sustainable responses to online child victimization – including responses to the online sharing of child sexual abuse images, OJJDP has increased the capacity of thousands of communities across the country to combat Internet crimes against children.

In FY 2021, ICAC task force programs conducted more than 137,000 investigations and 90,300 forensic exams. These efforts resulted in the arrests of more than 10,400 individuals. Additionally, the ICAC program trained over 29,500 law enforcement personnel, over 2,250 prosecutors, and more than 7,300 other professionals working in the ICAC field.

Visit the ICAC Task Force Program website for additional information.

Programs and Funding

In FY 2021, funding for the ICAC program totaled $34.68 million to support ICAC task forces and training and technical assistance. ICAC Task Force Program funding is supported under the Missing and Exploited Children appropriation included in the Department of Justice fiscal year appropriation.

Funding History

• FY 2003: $12.4 million
• FY 2004: $12.3 million
• FY 2005: $13.3 million
• FY 2006: $14.3 million
• FY 2007: $14.3 million
• FY 2008: $16.9 million
• FY 2009: $74.5 million
• FY 2010: $30 million
• FY 2011: $30 million
• FY 2012: $25.7 million
• FY 2013: $25.05 million
• FY 2014: $27 million
• FY 2015: $27 million
• FY 2016: $27.6 million
• FY 2017: $27.6 million
• FY 2018: $28.6 million
• FY 2019: $36.16 million
• FY 2020: $34.73 million
• FY 2021: $34.68 million

Training and Technical Assistance

The ICAC Training and Technical Assistance Program was established to provide ICAC task forces and their affiliates with the training and technical assistance they need to conduct effective investigations and prosecutions. Training providers include the following:

• SEARCH, the National Consortium for Justice Information and Statistics, provides training related to social networking sites, peer to peer file sharing, wireless networks, and cell phone technology for law enforcement, prosecutors and allied professionals.
• The National White Collar Crime Center provides training for law enforcement, prosecutors, and other stakeholders in the ICAC program to improve investigative, prosecutorial, and forensic capabilities; create and distribute guidelines, best practices, and investigative methodologies; and coordinate meetings with grantees and practitioners.
• The Innocent Justice Foundation provides a comprehensive mental health and wellness program for ICAC task forces to address negative effects and trauma for individuals exposed to child sexual abuse images through their work.
• Fox Valley Technical College (FVTC) provides training focused on investigative techniques and best practices for undercover operations to combat Internet crimes against children and site-specific technical assistance to ICAC Task Forces.
• The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children^® facilitates training to law enforcement; prosecutors; and criminal- and juvenile-justice, child-serving, and healthcare professionals on issues related to missing and exploited children.

Contacts

Visit the ICAC Task Force Contact Information section of the ICAC Task Force Program website for state-specific contacts and websites.

Resources

OJJDP Publications

AMBER Alert Field Guide for Law Enforcement Officers
May 2019. The purpose of this guide is to provide law enforcement officers with information that will enable them to avoid or mitigate critical “pitfalls” when working a child abduction case. 37 pages. NCJ 252795.
PDF

Protecting Children in Cyberspace: The ICAC Task Force Program
Bulletin, January 2002. Discusses efforts by OJJDP's Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program that address emerging online threats, such as computer-facilitated sex crimes, directed at children and teenagers. 8 pages. NCJ 191213.
PDF (204 KB) | HTML

Protecting Children Online: Using Research-Based Algorithms to Prioritize Law Enforcement Internet Investigations, Technical Report
OJJDP-Sponsored, May 2016. This project used data from 20 Internet Crimes Against Children task forces to develop empirically-based recommendations to assist law enforcement conducting Internet investigations. 54 pages. NCJ 250154.
PDF

Review of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program: Interim Report to the Attorney General Fiscal Years 2010 and 2011
This interim report features data covering fiscal years 2010 and 2011 and is intended to provide a summary of the ICAC program’s statistical accomplishments. 76 pages.
PDF

National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction Report to Congress
August 2010. In complying with the provisions of the PROTECT Our Children Act of 2008, the U.S. Justice Department presents this second report to Congress on a National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction, which is the culmination of a year of discussions among members of an interagency working group convened by the National Coordinator for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction at the Justice Department. 166 pages.
PDF

Press Releases

• Nearly 1,700 Suspected Child Sex Predators Arrested During Operation “Broken Heart”
• OJJDP Awards More Than $104 Million to Protect Youth, Find Missing Children, and Prosecute Child Exploitation
• More Than 2,300 Suspected Online Child Sex Offenders Arrested During Operation "Broken Heart"
• Department of Justice Releases First National Strategy for Child Exploitation and Interdiction

Related Websites

Project Safe Childhood
Project Safe Childhood combats the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children.

Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force
The ICAC Task Force Program develops effective responses to the online enticement of children by sexual predators, child exploitation, child obscenity and pornography cases. View ICAC Task Force Contacts on this website.