On June 12th, 2025, the STOP CSAM Act was passed by the Judiciary Committee. This act, which unanimously passed the Senate in 2024, aims to crack down on the proliferation of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online.
This act will combat the spread of online child sexual abuse material by allowing victims of child sexual exploitation to sue companies that promoted, facilitated, hosted, stored CSAM, or made it available. This increases transparency in the technology industry and expands protections for victims and witnesses in federal court. Additionally, it will strengthen the CyberTipline reporting requirements, which mandates that large tech companies submit annual reports describing their efforts to promote a culture of safety for children on their platform.
“Child pornography,” the term currently used in United States federal laws, is defined as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor. While this phrase still exists, the SVPA commends Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-IL) for using the term “child sexual abuse material (CSAM)”, as it reflects the abuse that is depicted as well as the subsequent trauma to the child who cannot consent.
Child victims suffer re-victimization each time the image of their sexual abuse is viewed and shared across the internet. CSAM survivors say the distribution of images impacts them differently than the hands-on abuse because the images are permanent and the distribution never ends.
The SVPA endorses the STOP CSAM Act. We strongly urge members of the House to vote in favor of this vital bill and implore the President to sign it into law.
