Europe hosts 60% of the world's online child sexual abuse material, making it the global hotspot.

Omissions

• The 60% figure comes from the IWF's report covering 2024 data; the IWF's more recent Annual Data & Insights Report for 2025 (published in early 2026, before the session date of 2026-07-07) shows Europe's share of the criminal content the IWF actioned had risen to about 72% — so the claim understates, rather than overstates, the most recent situation.
• The claim's phrase '60% of online material' is a simplification: the IWF figure refers specifically to child sexual abuse webpages hosted, not all online material.
• The data is produced by the Internet Watch Foundation, an NGO that compiles and actioning CSAM reports; it is not an official EU statistic.

Sources

• PrimaryInternet Watch Foundation — News: Latest IWF report shows Europe now hosts 60% of child sexual abuse webpagesThe report reveals Europe now hosts the majority of child sexual abuse webpages (60%), with North America moving to second place (37%).
• PrimaryInternet Watch Foundation — 2025 Annual Data & Insights Report: Geographic InsightsExplore global data trends in the 2025 Annual Data & Insights Report. We analyse the geographic distribution of hosted content and reporting origins. Europe continues to be the largest host of criminal content we action, with 72% of all hosted content actioned by the IWF.
• SecondaryLiberties.eu — Europe Is Global Hub for Online Child Sexual Abuse ContentA new report reveals that Europe is becoming the global hub for hosting child sexual abuse images and videos. The annual report by the Internet Watch Foundation...
• SecondaryChildlight — New report states that Netherlands hosts most of Europe's child sexual abuse materialNew research has identified that the Netherlands is responsible for hosting more than 60% of Western Europe's Child Sexual Abuse Material.