A CHILDREN’S charity is calling for “robust action” to cut off the supply of child sexual abuse images as the situation has become a “social emergency”.

Over the last two decades, digital technology has fuelled an “explosion” in the production and consumption of online abuse images, according to the NSPCC.

The NSPCC has spoken out after the Daily Echo reported that former soldier Bryan Young was spared jail after admitting possession of almost 2,000 indecent images of children.

The 79-year-old great-grandad of five, from Marnhull, Sturminster Newton, appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court on Friday.

The day before, IT expert Barry Harkcom was sentenced to two years and one month in jail after downloading up to 20 million films and pictures of child abuse.

Harkcom, from Parkstone, collected the images over 16 years and used technology designed to hide the images in his laptop.

An NSPCC spokesperson said the men’s actions had “only fuelled this disgusting industry which destroys children’s lives”.

Sharon Copsey, head of service for the South West, says while progress has been made in tackling the production and consumption of abuse images, more needs to be done by internet providers, governments, and law enforcement agencies to “cut this material off at the source”.

“The sheer numbers of people viewing child sexual abuse images online must be addressed as a social emergency,” she said.

“We recognise that progress has been made. For example, the work of the National Crime Agency and the police has safeguarded record numbers of victims and arrested hundreds of suspects in the UK. And industry is working with partners such as the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) to identify and remove child sexual abuse images. But these efforts alone will not solve the problem.”

She continued: “We are calling for a robust action plan to cut off the supply of child sexual abuse images in circulation, and deter adults from seeking out child abuse online. We should be long past the point when there are dark corners of the internet where these terrible crimes against children are hosted for the pleasure of paedophiles.”

She said children must be educated about how to keep themselves safe online and offline and how to get help as soon as grooming or abuse happens.

“And every child who is the victim of exploitation and abuse should get the support they need to rebuild their lives,” she added.

The NSPCC has identified these key areas where urgent action is needed to turn back the tide of indecent images:

• Internet companies need to develop and share technological solutions – and make data about progress removing child abuse images publicly available

• Internet firms operating in the UK need to sign up to a set of minimum standards, enforced by a backstop regulatory power

• Young people should be able to get nude selfies removed from the internet more easily, as they can often end up in the hands of predators

• Children and young people who have been the victim of these crimes need more easily-accessible support to help them recover

• Offenders who are convicted must be offered treatment to reduce their future risk to children

• An independent annual audit of the current self-regulatory framework must take place to ensure its effectiveness

• Government should produce an annual transparency report on the identification and removal of child abuse images accessed from within the UK