Every day, millions of children use the internet, and unfortunately internet child predators go online every day and hunt for their next victim. Nationally, one of out every seven children between the ages of 10 and 17 will be sexually solicited over the internet.
Based on the number of complaints that pour into the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC)'s CyberTipline, we know that the number of internet crimes against children is not diminishing. Last week, the number of children reporting online solicitations more than tripled to 731 reported incidents, up from 233 reports two weeks ago. Of the 43,000 children my CyberSafety Education presentation has reached in middle and high schools throughout Florida so far this school year, nearly 3,000 of them tell us they have either been sexually solicited online or have received unwanted images of pornography from offenders – and those are just the ones brave enough to raise their hands.
In Florida, we're committed to fighting these odds. My office has a dedicated CyberCrime Unit which polices the internet, protecting children and bringing down the predators. Last spring, the Florida Legislature saw a need for the CyberCrime Unit's efforts to cover the entire state and gave us the resources to expand our CyberCrime Unit statewide. Since then, we have fully built out our Jacksonville headquarters and have opened a new office in Orlando. Today, we opened our third office, located in Ft. Lauderdale, to serve South Florida.
This office will give us an important presence in a region where we will be joining a skilled and dedicated community of both law enforcement and prosecutors. These cooperative efforts and our partnerships with local, state and federal authorities are essential to combat internet child predators and to enhance our work on a statewide level. Together, we are making Florida a safer place for children and families.