Annual Report Online Complaints OfficeFSM Complaints Office records new record number of reports

More depictions of abuse and faster deletion

Depictions of sexual abuse of minors accounted for the largest proportion of substantiated complaints at 57% (12,918 cases). Compared to the previous year, the number of cases more than quadrupled (2022: 37% - 3,224 cases). This new record of reported allegations of abuse and the enormous increase within one year are worrying. The reported cases are also due to the forwarding of information from other complaints offices of the international network INHOPE, which report cases to the FSM via the ICCAM platform ("I see CAM - Child Abuse Material") as part of a global cooperation if they are hosted on German servers.

The FSM immediately forwards depictions of abuse of minors that are stored on German servers to the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) and informs the host provider in a notice-and-takedown procedure. One positive aspect is that, despite the sharp increase in the number of cases, the time taken to take remedial action against depictions of abuse hosted in Germany has been further reduced. On average, it took 1.2 days (2022: 1.5 days) from the report to the FSM Complaints Office to the removal of the content. Overall, the removal rate for this content is 100%.

In the case of depictions of sexual abuse of minors hosted abroad, the complaints office informs the host provider and also forwards the report to the relevant partner hotline in the INHOPE complaints network. The deletion rate for content hosted abroad was 87% four weeks after the initial report (2022: 77%).

Commitment to combating pornography, hate, violence and youth endangerment

The number of substantiated complaints in the area of pornographyalmost doubled compared to the previous year (2023: 8,889 cases, 2022: 4,455). Although their share of the total number of complaints fell significantly to 39% (2022: 51%), pornographic content still accounted for the second-largest share of substant iated complaints. These are cases of pornographic content that was freely accessible to children and young people without an age verification system. The proportion of reported cases of other content classified as harmful to minors also fell significantly (2023: 1% - 227 cases, 2022: 6% - 486 cases).

As in the previous year, reported hate crime (2023: 120 cases, 2022: 95 cases) mainly involved depictions of symbols of unconstitutional organizations, which accounted for 80%. Depictions of extreme violence were reported in 585 cases (2022: 445 cases). This includes violent and animal pornography, violations of human dignity and glorification of violence.

In 2023, not only was more online content reported overall than in the previous year, but there were also more substantiated complaints and therefore more content for which the complaints office was able to take action on the basis of youth protection laws. In only 26% of the total cases reported, the FSM Complaints Office found no violation (2022: 32%). This generally concerns cases in which the right to freedom of expression prevails, youth protection rules were not violated or content was access-protected or could not be found. In these cases, the complaints office informs the reporters about the legal situation, refers them to the relevant authorities or appropriate help and advice services and also provides tips on the safe configuration of devices used by children and young people.

Simple reporting channels - quick check

Users who come across problematic or possibly illegal content online can report it to the FSM complaints office at fsm.de/complaints report. The URL of the content and a brief description of the reason for the complaint are required for reporting via the online complaint form. In cooperation with eco - Association of the Internet Industry, the FSM also operates the portal internet-beschwerdestelle.de and also accepts information from young people who can report illegal content via the JUUUPORT platform (juuuport.de/report).

• All figures and charts can be found in the FSM Complaints Office 2023 statistics.