Zero Abuse Project is committed to protecting children from abuse and exploitation, and this commitment is reflected in our current projects aimed at supporting law enforcement and ICAC investigators. These projects include:
ICAC Task Force National Training Program, which will provide training on forensics and emerging technologies related to technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation;
Nexus for Open-source Virtual Assistance (NOVA), a cutting-edge tool that will integrate and streamline numerous social media and open-source intelligence tools into a user-friendly interface accessible to any law enforcement officer.
UpcomingFREEICAC Trainings
The Importance of the Forensic Interview in Tech-Facilitated Crimes
This in-person experiential course teaches ICAC investigators about technology-facilitated crimes and the importance of the forensic interviewer gathering information about a child's involvement in virtual contexts while ensuring admissibility.
Tuesday, December 12. 2023 - Thursday December 14, 2023 Phoenix, AZ
This part of the 3-part Digital Forensics webinar series teaches ICAC investigators about methods to recover artifacts from a vehicle’s 75 computer systems, including critical data from connected mobile devices.
Topics:
Vehicle Forensics | Training Dates: January 23, 2024; March 5, 2024
Video Forensics | Training Dates: March 5, 2024; April 15, 2024
Mobile Forensics | Training Dates: June 4, 2024; September 9, 2024
Cost: FREE
Registration Opening Soon! Check back for details.
Advanced Search Warrants
Advanced Search Warrants: In-Person Training
This in-person experiential course delves into the intricacies of legal processes, teaching participants how to effectively request data from service providers and social platforms. The course emphasizes the importance of the secure handling, transport, and storage of digital evidence, maintaining a meticulous chain of custody.
Special attention is given to child exploitation cases, equipping officers with risk-assessment tools to ascertain children’s vulnerability. The course culminates in a virtual crime scene simulation where attendees practice evidence collection and the execution of a search warrant in a controlled environment.
Training Date(s):
January 15, 2024 | Location TBD
April 1, 2024 | Location TBD
Cost: FREE
Registration Opening Soon! Check back for details.
Cryptocurrency & Dark Web Investigations
Cryptocurrency & Dark Web Investigations:
In-Person Training
This in-person experiential training offers an in-depth study of cryptocurrency, the Dark Web, and the use of these platforms in child sexual abuse material (CSAM) distribution. Participants will learn about transaction protection using cryptography, stay updated with current trends in decentralized mediums, review major Dark Web cases involving child abuse, and gain hands-on experience with virtual wallets and Dark Web profiles to enhance their investigative skills.
Training Date(s):
February 5, 2024 | Location TBD
April 22, 2024 | Location TBD
Cost: FREE
Registration Opening Soon! Check back for details.
Tab Content
specialized training
ICAC Task Force National Training Program
Zero Abuse’s Specialized Forensics and Technology Training Project provides ICAC investigators and prosecutors with skill-based training on forensics and emerging technologies related to technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation. The Project includes in-person courses on topics such as CyberTip triage, cryptocurrency investigations, and forensic interviewing. Zero Abuse also offers technical assistance to support to ICAC Task Forces and affiliates as they investigate technology-facilitated crime.
The COVID-19 pandemic increased technology-facilitated crimes against children, presenting challenges for investigators and prosecutors who lack training and access to innovative methods and technologies. Zero Abuse draws on its subject matter expertise and network to combat this surge in crimes against children. Zero Abuse/s Advanced Experiential Child Exploitation Training Project provides investigators, forensic examiners, and prosecutors with advanced, skill-based training on child exploitation search warrants, cloud forensics, and suspect interrogation methods. The Project also includes an on-demand portal for law enforcement to access legal process, search warrant templates, and other resources related to child exploitation investigations.
Zero Abuse is developing a cutting-edge tool to tackle the rising online sexual exploitation of children. Nexus for Open-source Virtual Assistance (NOVA) will integrate and streamline numerous social media and open-source intelligence tools into a user-friendly interface accessible to any law enforcement officer.
NOVA will identify relevant online information such as social media profiles, physical addresses, phone numbers, known associates, and more, enabling swift and efficient investigations. Zero Abuse is optimizing the tool for mobile devices, allowing for easy deployment while on patrol. This innovative solution will equip law enforcement with the knowledge, tools, and methods they need to combat child sexual abuse material, exploitation, and trafficking.
Practical techniques to help ICAC investigators navigate their immense CyberTip workloads
Highlight OSINT methods to quickly identify high-risk suspects with imminent access to children
Include real-world child exploitation case studies to ensure course realism and immediate relevance to participants
Participants will apply new skills in practical training scenarios involving simulated CyberTip processing, triage, and related OSINT challenges
Cryptocurrency and Dark Web Investigations:
In-depth exploration of cryptocurrency; digital assets, the Dark Web; and the role of peer-to-peer platforms in CSAM production and distribution
Examine the use of cryptography to protect digital records of transactions and anonymize perpetrators of child exploitation.
Explore current trends in exchange mediums with no central authority, as well as tools and countermeasures for investigators
Review high-profile Dark Web cases involving lucrative international child sexual abuse rings and pay-per-view livestreams of child sexual abuse and torture
Customized virtual wallets and sample Dark Web profiles will be established for participants’ use to demystify cryptocurrency technologies and equip attendees with tailored, real-world training experiences that can be directly applied to investigations
The Importance of Forensic Interviewing in Technology-Facilitated Crimes:
Unique dynamics of technology-facilitated crimes, including perpetrators’ grooming and manipulation tactics, and the role of polyvictimization
How forensic interviewers can explore a child’s involvement in relevant virtual contexts and gather information about the use of digital devices without compromising the admissibility of the child’s statement
Explore the introduction of digital and other forms of evidence in the forensic interview
Participants will work in small teams to develop case strategies; conduct a mock forensic interview; and present their case plans to faculty
Address every step of the investigative process, from the development of probable cause through the service and execution of search warrants
Teach participants how to develop and lead a model planning meeting to identify potential case hurdles or legal roadblocks
Address suspect identification, risk identification, and potential factors necessitating expedited service of search warrants
Address seizure of remotely stored data and best practices when using law enforcement portals to serve legal process and collect evidence
Virtual Reality and the Metaverse:
2-part series
Explore emerging technologies including virtual reality, blended realities, the Metaverse, and their implications for child exploitation investigators
Examine investigative and prosecutorial countermeasures to crimes perpetrated in virtual settings
Explore investigative challenges related to the disturbing emergence of simulated child abuse imagery
Digital Forensics:
3-part series
Mobile Phone Forensics – practical methods for recovering encrypted data and otherwise navigating the wealth of information available on mobile devices
Vehicle Forensics – practical methods for recovering the forensic artifacts found in a typical vehicle’s 75 computer systems
Video Forensics – promising approaches such as tracking the origin of video images and following the digital trails and artifacts perpetrators leave across social media platforms
Forensic Interviews in Technology-Facilitated Crimes:
3-part series
Social Media and the Forensic Interview – Social media risk factors, its efficacy as a grooming and manipulation tool, and the ways social media can be used to corroborate or refute allegations
Online Child Sex Trafficking and the Forensic Interview – How virtual environments contribute to the selection, grooming, and facilitation of child sex trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation
Sextortion and the Forensic Interview – How children and youth are vulnerable to systemic disinhibition and desensitization by offenders, how sextortion creates barriers to disclosure, and the importance of using a neutral information-gathering approach in response to allegations
Legal process categories and strategy, and what information can be requested from service providers and social media platforms
Packaging, transporting, and storing seized digital evidence, and maintaining accurate chain of custody logs
Filing legal process and conducting post-search warrant execution meetings with prosecutors
Development of a risk assessment plan to determine whether children are present at the residence or if the suspect has access to children, and quickly establish a priority level for a case
Considerations when serving Child Exploitation search warrant with an emphasis on Officer Safety
Virtually-simulated crime scene where participants will collect items of evidentiary value, identify items that may serve as corroborating evidence, and execute a search warrant
Explore the value of both suspect and victim cloud-based data and the numerous locations where cloud data is stored
Examine investigative methods to access data stored in the cloud, even if investigators do not have access to the cell phone or other device
Address cutting-edge cloud forensic techniques, such as leveraging artificial intelligence to rapidly detect high-value individual offenders and identify child victims and their locations
Review the background operations of devices that upload data without user knowledge, such as GPS locations, Google searches, chat conversations, etc.
Participants will apply digital forensic methods to cloud accounts in immersive, case-based scenarios
Modeled after Zero Abuse’s ChildFirst forensic interviewing protocol
Necessary given that offender confessions lessen the need for children to testify, reduce a child’s self-blame, increase familial support, impact jury decisions, and impact offender accountability
Development of a phased interviewing model to address the unique dynamics of sexual offense perpetration against children and identify special techniques to effectively elicit information from suspects
Provide concrete guidance for interrogating child exploitation suspects with flexibility to adapt interrogations to the distinctive characteristics of each offender
Secure, access-controlled repository of child exploitation-specific legal process, search warrant templates, and other resources, such as:
Subpoenas
Search warrants
Letters of preservation Admonition and waiver of rights
Consent to search forms (cloud accounts, social media, mobile devices, etc.)
Seized property receipts
Request for forensic examination
Threat assessments
Voluntary statement forms
Pretrial motions for admissibility of digital evidence
Terms and conditions of probation for child exploitation offenders
Sample Operational Plan
Risk Assessment Matrix
The documents provided in our portal are sensitive and intended for law enforcement use only. If you are a law enforcement investigator and would like to request a copy of any of these documents, please complete the following information. Our team will review your request and contact you shortly.
What You Can Find
Legal Documents
Subpoenas, search warrants, letters of preservation, admonition and waiver of rights, consent to search forms, seized property receipts, and pretrial motions for admissibility of digital evidence are all legal documents we can help identify. These documents are specific to legal proceedings and are used in the investigation and prosecution of child exploitation cases.
Investigative Tools
Threat assessments, voluntary statement forms, and request for forensic examination documents are investigative tools used in child exploitation cases. These tools are designed to gather evidence and information to aid in the investigation and prosecution of these cases.
Child Protection Measures
Terms and conditions of probation for child exploitation offenders could be categorized under child protection measures, which would include other measures aimed at protecting children from exploitation. These measures would include things like sex offender registration requirements and other legal provisions aimed at preventing offenders from reoffending and protecting potential victims.
