INHOPE | Our Story

Fighting CSAM
since 1999.

Our Mission

Our mission is to support and enable INHOPE hotlines in the rapid identification and removal of Child Sexual Abuse Material from the digital world.

In a borderless digital world CSAM has global consequences and as CSAM increases so do our efforts and those of our partners to combat it.

Our Vision

INHOPE’s vision is a digital world free of Child Sexual Abuse Material.

Does your organisation align with INHOPE’s vision? If yes, then learn more about our partnerships.

Our Network

INHOPE is made up of hotlines around the world that operate in all EU member states, Russia, South Africa, North & South America, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. We support hotlines and their partner organisations through training, best practices, quality assurance and staff welfare.

Our Story

The Issue

INHOPE focuses on responding to criminally illegal content and activity. There are a wide range of illegal activities which occur on the Internet and these are divided into two different types: criminally illegal activity which is investigated and prosecuted by Law Enforcement Agencies and civil illegal activity which can be prosecuted by a wide range of civilian bodies.

Understand what we do:



Run for its Members by its Members!

INHOPE is a members' organisation, run for its members by its members. INHOPE is governed by Articles of Association (English translation) and Rules and Regulations. The original Dutch version of the Articles of Association, only the text of the Dutch notarial deed executed in the Dutch language prevails. Member hotlines have to comply with a Code of Practice. Members vote to elect a President who leads an elected Executive Committee, also known as the Board.

The Board is charged with the management and administration of the Association. The Board currently consists of seven people.


The Board
Jean-Christophe Le Toquin

Jean-Christophe Le Toquin

INHOPE President

Jean-Christophe Le Toquin (Point de Contact, France) is an advisor to tech companies, with a track record in developing trustworthy multi-stakeholder initiatives on cybersecurity and against cybercrime. He is President of Point de Contact since 2018.

Sean Lyons

Sean Lyons

INHOPE Vice-President

Sean Lyons (Netsafe, New Zealand) is the Director of Technology & Partnerships at Netsafe, New Zealand’s principle online safety agency. He currently leads Netsafe’s work on child sexual abuse online.

Carolina Piñeros

Carolina Piñeros

INHOPE Board Member

Industrial Engineer graduated with an advanced degree in Personal and Family Development (Colombia). Carolina cofounded Red PaPaz, a network of more than 500 schools and 650.000 parents in Colombia. In 2016, Te Protejo joined the INHOPE Network. Under Carolina’s leadership, Red PaPaz has led several advocacy initiatives to make changes in public policies related to the protection of children´s rights in Colombia.

Seila Samleang

Seila Samleang

INHOPE Board Member

Seila Samleang, Executive Director of APLE, is a go-to expert in child protection and online safety. As a certified content analyst within INHOPE, he also serves as a core trainer for national programs. With a Master’s degree in law, Seila is a key member of the National Child Protection Committee. Additionally, he plays a vital role in government policy development and facilitates international collaboration among law enforcement agencies to combat transnational cases of child sexual exploitation.

Mashilo Boloka

Mashilo Boloka

INHOPE Board Member

Mashilo holds a Doctorate in Philosophy, Communication and Media Studies and has extensive experience in policy development, corporate governance and business analysis. He is the Chief Executive Officer of the South African member hotline operated by the Film and Publication Board.

Paraskevi (Vivi) Fragopoulou

Paraskevi (Vivi) Fragopoulou

INHOPE Treasurer

Paraskevi (Vivi) Fragopoulou is the founder and leader of the Greek Hotline SafeLine operating since 2003, and the Greek Safer Internet Center SaferInternet4Kids. She is a Professor of Computer Science at the Hellenic Mediterranean University and an associate researcher at the Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas.

Heidi De Pauw

Heidi De Pauw

INHOPE Board Member

Heidi De Pauw is the Chief Executive Officer at Child Focus, the Belgian Foundation for Missing and Sexually Exploited children. With a background in criminology and extensive experience in child welfare, she spearheads initiatives to safeguard children both offline and online. Heidi actively advocates for child protection through publications and speaking events as a subject matter expert on human trafficking, sexually exploited and missing children.

What do you need to know?

Establish a hotline

The starting point for any initiative seeking to establish a hotline will be to understand the particulars of the national context in which the hotline will be developed. Before deciding whether it will be feasible and possible to set up an Internet hotline, it is crucial to understand what an ‘hotline’ is, and what it is not.

Find out more using our hotline development guide.

Meet the Team