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Missing and Exploited Children

Description

In 2024, there were 349,557 reports of missing persons, involving youth, entered into the Federal Bureau of Investigation's National Crime Information Center (NCIC). A total of 533,936 missing person reports were submitted to NCIC, of those 93,447 records remained active as of December 31, 2024. Youth accounted for 27 percent of those active missing persons records.

OJJDP Funding

In fiscal year (FY) 2024, OJJDP awarded more than $86.2 million to support locating missing children, prevent child abduction, and provide technical training and assistance. The awards are as follows: 

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) is an information clearinghouse and resource center for families of missing and exploited children and the professionals who serve them. OJJDP has supported NCMEC since its inception in 1984. 

NCMEC operates a 24-hour, toll-free missing children's hotline (1–800–THE–LOST); the CyberTipline, a reporting system for suspected online child exploitation; and the Child Victim Identification program, which uses specialized software to identify and locate children whose images appear in child sexual abuse material. 

Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program

The Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force program helps state and local law enforcement agencies develop an effective response to technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation and Internet crimes against children. 

Developed in 1998, the program is a multinational and multijurisdictional network of 61 ICAC task forces—consisting of nearly 5,500 federal, state, local, and Tribal law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies—throughout the United States.

AMBER Alert

AMBER Alert logo

The AMBER Alert early warning system notifies the public with an urgent bulletin in the most serious child abduction cases. Law enforcement informs broadcasters and state transportation officials about the abduction, triggering alerts on radio, television, highway signs, cell phones and other electronic means. With support from OJJDP, the AMBER Alert system is now being used in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It is also used in parts of Indian country and internationally in 45 countries. 

OJJDP engages NCMEC to oversee the secondary distribution of AMBER Alerts to national partners such as Google and Meta (Facebook). Secondary distribution of AMBER Alerts enhances state and local efforts by ensuring the alerts reach the greatest number of people, thereby increasing the chances that an abducted child will be recovered safely. 

Visit the AMBER Alert Statistics page for data and reports on the impact and reach of the AMBER Alert system. 

Missing and Exploited Children Training and Technical Assistance Program

The Missing and Exploited Children Training and Technical Assistance program provides essential education resources to prosecutors, law enforcement officers, child protection personnel, medical providers, and other child-serving professionals.

The training works to strengthen multidisciplinary responses to the investigation, prosecution, and prevention of child victimization cases. Virtual and in-person training sessions cover topics related to child abuse and exploitation, including the commercial sexual exploitation of children.   

Publications 

Following are a sampling of topical resources developed or sponsored by OJJDP: 

Additional Resources 

AMBER Alert
A voluntary partnership between law enforcement agencies, broadcasters, transportation agencies, and the wireless industry, the AMBER Alert system is used to activate an urgent bulletin in the most serious child abduction cases.

AMBER Alert in Indian Country
The AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance program, AMBER Alert in Indian Country initiative, works to assist Tribal communities in developing programs to safely recover endangered missing or abducted children through the coordinated efforts of the Tribes and their local, state and federal partners by using training and technology to enhance response capacities, capabilities and increase public participation in protecting children.

Child ID App
Developed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, this free tool provides a convenient place to electronically store photos and vital information about children so that it is easily accessible if needed.

International Parental Child Abduction
This section of the U.S. Department of State website provides information and services to parents involved in cases of international child abductions.

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC)
NCMEC was established in 1984 to prevent child abduction and sexual exploitation, find missing children, and assist victims and their families.

National Missing Children's Day
This section of the OJJDP website provides information about the activities surrounding the annual commemoration of May 25th as National Missing Children's Day.

National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
A program of the National Institute of Justice, NamUs is a national centralized repository and resource center for missing persons and unidentified decedent records.

Office of Justice Programs (OJP): Missing Children Special Feature
This online resource presents publications, program, and related information focusing on missing children.