The final webinar in the Expert Insights 2026 series explored the growing challenge of sadistic online exploitation (SOE) in gaming environments. Bringing together experts from the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT), Discord and the Tech Coalition the session examined how these networks operate, why they pose a growing challenge to the online safety ecosystem, and how collaboration across sectors is essential to disrupting them.
The discussion highlighted how gaming environments have been exploited by malicious actors seeking to target children and young people. As online spaces evolve, so do the methods used by perpetrators. Speakers explored how sadistic online exploitation represents an increasingly complex form of abuse that crosses platform boundaries and intersects with multiple areas of online harm.
The webinar began by examining what distinguishes sadistic online exploitation from other forms of online abuse. Rather than focusing on a single type of harm, these networks combine child sexual exploitation, self-harm, violent extremist content and other forms of violence into interconnected patterns of abuse.
These networks are driven by a desire to inflict harm and create destruction. Victims are manipulated into producing child sexual abuse material (CSAM), engaging in self-harm, or carrying out other abusive acts, while perpetrators use intimidation and psychological coercion to maintain control.
The discussion also explored the methods used to manipulate victims. Threats to expose personal information, share abusive content with family members, schools or peers, or publish material online are frequently used to maintain control and prevent victims from seeking help. In some cases, victims may also be coerced into abusing others, further extending the harm.
Instead, perpetrators often operate across multiple online services, identifying vulnerable people in one space before moving interactions to another. The social features and opportunities to build relationships within gaming environments can help them establish trust before manipulation and exploitation begin.
Because these networks operate across multiple platforms, perpetrators can reach victims regardless of location, making international cooperation and information sharing an essential part of any response.
A key takeaway throughout the discussion was that sadistic online exploitation cannot be addressed through siloed approaches. The overlap between child sexual exploitation, cybercrime, violent extremism and other online harms requires expertise from different disciplines to work together.
Speakers shared examples of how platforms are adapting their responses by bringing together teams that have traditionally focused on separate areas of trust and safety. Viewing these actors as part of interconnected networks, rather than isolated incidents, enables more effective detection and intervention.
The discussion also emphasised that enforcement should extend beyond removing individual accounts or pieces of content. Retaining evidence, including chat histories, technical identifiers and indicators of cross-platform activity, can support hotlines and law enforcement in identifying wider networks and preventing further harm.
Because harmful activity often spans multiple platforms, no single organisation has visibility into the full picture.
Speakers emphasised the importance of continued cooperation between platforms, hotlines, law enforcement and other stakeholders to strengthen reporting pathways, share expertise and improve joint understanding of emerging threats.
The discussion also highlighted the need to design platforms with potential misuse in mind. Because not every platform is equally vulnerable to misuse and because SOE manifests differently and to varying degrees across platforms, companies must each consider how features such as communication tools, community functions and in-game interactions could be exploited to help reduce opportunities for abuse before harm occurs.
This webinar was not recorded. If you missed out on more webinars from our Expert Insights series, you can check out our YouTube channel.
