Pauline Stuart said three years after her son committed suicide that she now has a better view of her true friend.

Stuart's son Ryan, 17, was a high school student in a close family when he took his life in 2022 and became a victim of the "six points" plot of the crime.

There are four people charged Last week was linked to plans targeting and extorting Stewart's son. But Stewart tried to combat another harmful problem: public dislike of acknowledging and talking about the American child sexual exploitation crisis.

"If they were just talking, it was almost like people felt like they would get 'fool'," Stewart told CBS News in an interview at her Oregon home. "I thought I was someone who seemed uncomfortable right now. It seemed that they were talking about the tragedy was 'infectious' and couldn't seem to deal with talking to me."

Ryan's final suicide is only one in cases of child sexual exploitation since 2022, including a unique and shocking surge in what is now called the Sextorth case, where children are lured to share illegal images and then blackmailed by recipients.

Over the past two years, the CBS News and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's Reports of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's Reports have shown that 20 million tips on potential child sexual exploitation have been reported to security officials. FBI data shows that since 2019, the number of serrate cases has occupied Quintuplpl.

National Center for Missing and Exploited Children also told CBS News: "We see the most urgent and dangerous threats that are shocking: Online temptations have increased by 192%, 1,325% excitement Abusive material generated by AI and the increasing number of reports related to online groups of violence against children. ”

But Stuart, a child safety expert and federal investigator who spoke with CBS News, said silence and news coverage of the child sexual abuse crisis could hinder their efforts to warn families, resolve issues and arrest criminals.

"Parents just don't think it could happen to their children, so they just shut down the conversation about it," Stewart said.

“It really makes people squeeze, but we have to be directly inclined to be uncomfortable,” said Adam Rosenberg, executive director of the Baltimore Hope Center.

"If we adults can't talk about it, how do we expect our children to do it," Rosenberg said.

The Justice Department, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel and FBI Deputy Director and Bongino Work has begun to improve the image of the crisis.

In the public campaign of the public campaign “Resuming Justice Action,” the Justice Department enforced a national open campaign of federal agents and local law enforcement to track offenders, execute arrests and file criminal charges.

At least 200 people have been arrested, including an Illinois man who was accused of taking illegal images of an 8-year-old West Michigan teacher, allegedly an illegal photo of a student and a Florida prison inmate, accused of having images of child sexual abuse on a banned phone.

The Justice Department attempted to publicize its impact and its impact from its headquarters in Washington, D.C. earlier this month.

With the focus of the web TV cameras, Bundy said, “Parents, you have to know: Your child has no right to privacy on the internet,” Bundy said in his speech. “You have to monitor what they are doing.”

“If convicted, these fallen humans will face the highest punishment, some will be in their lifetime,” Bondy said. “If you target children online, you will not escape us.”

The FBI Field Office and 93 U.S. attorneys’ offices that have entered local community media have arrested local arrests from “Recovery Justice Operation,” including the announcement of U.S. attorneys in New Jersey, who announced the arrests of four New Jersey men and one New Jersey man, a New Jersey man, a New Jersey case against child pornography on April 28, between April 28 and May 2.

Bongino, a talkative Talk-Radio and social media giant, had millions in his posts when he was in the FBI and he used his digital platform to solve the problem. "Adjustment to justice is a powerful message: If you hurt children in the United States, you will have no shelter. There is nowhere to hide. You will be hunted and you will be prosecuted."

The agency, in a sophisticated FBI video, shows agents working in fields in New York, Baltimore, Cleveland, Atlanta and Chicago, as part of the operation.

“Crimes against children, especially those against just action to restore justice are some of the most heartbreaking and difficult cases we have encountered.”

Justice Department spokesman Kristina Mastropasqua told CBS News. “Parents, caregivers and communities are often unaware of the nature of the threat, how they can help fight it, or they should ask for a safer online environment for their children.”

Rosenberg's Maryland-based organization also helped promote stricter laws to combat child abuse, saying it is crucial to eliminate the stigma of conversations about child sexual exploitation.

"We need to talk directly. We can't get around it," Rosenberg said. "We need to reduce the stigma in the discussion like we did in the past on AIDS and cancer."

Rosenberg said government agencies are smart to choose to use their platforms and communication tools to ask questions and encourage conversations about child sexual abuse.

An FBI official told CBS News that the agency saw an upward trend in children's risks, partly due to advances in artificial intelligence technology, which is a certain universality Phone Application and criminal organizations that extort money against children.

Stuart received a series of notifications last week arrest Related to sons’ blackmail, parents need to be more confident and resourceful when discussing risks with each other and their children.

"Parents think it's absolutely not going to happen to the kids," Stewart said. "They're wrong. We have parents' control over Ryan's phone. We have restrictions on the websites he can continue. He can't download the app without our approval. It's hard to hide, but there are a lot of boys who have died for it."

Mastropasqua said the Justice Department worked closely with other law enforcement agencies and experts to share prevention tools. “The department’s primary responsibility is always the victim,” she said.

Last week, the Justice Department announced the arrests were linked to the extortion of Stewart's son. These include Alfred Kassi, a citizen of the Ivorian city, who was charged with Ryan Stuart in Ryan Stuart and was arrested by Ivoria authorities on April 29.

"At the time of his arrest, Cassie was still being communicated by phone to one-seventh of the 17-year-old victim in February 2022," investigators said.

If you or someone you know may be at risk of suicide, please help. In the United States, call 988 for Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or visit 988lifeline.org. In the UK, please call Samaritans In 116123.