Chad Harms, assistant professor of journalism and communication, said the recent breakdown of a global pedophile ring – including the ongoing investigation of more than 700 individuals – is not the first of its kind.

“There have been other large-scale arrests that have gone on in the past,” Harms said.

The successful arrest of some of the child abuse suspects, who are being investigated for the online distribution of pornographic material involving children, has occurred in England, Australia and Canada, and the U.S. is still investigating the matter.

Officials in the United States have declined to comment publicly on the investigation. Harms said this makes sense, because law enforcement officials often needs to exercise caution with the media in order to not alert criminals.

Although Harms does not specifically research child pornography, he does research online predators and is on the advisory council for the Iowa Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

His Web site, www.stopandhelp.org, is an educational site and a part of STOP, the Study for the Termination of Online Predators, a research initiative led by harms.

“My perspective comes from a communication research side,” Harms said.

Harms’ research is especially devoted to the strategies and communication techniques of Internet predators – known as “grooming” because they are used to draw children into relationships with the predators.

In addition to educating people about these grooming strategies through his Web site, Harms also researches technological solutions to the problem of online predators.

In the recent global investigation, child pornography was the main offense – including live video of children being exploited. Harms said such imagery is often used by predators to desensitize children, giving them the idea that what they are seeing is normal.

Harms said he thinks his most significant accomplishment has probably been his contribution to the available educational literature on the subject of online predators.

“It’s a problem that will continue,” Harms said.

He said one of the best strategies in combating these offenders is something people in law enforcement understand as “hardening the target.”

This means educating children and their parents so they are smarter and more able to recognize potential dangers, Harms said.

David Finkelhor, director of the Crimes against Children Research Center and professor of sociology at the University of New Hampshire, echoed Harms’ comments.

“For all the sophisticated technology and investigative techniques, our most important line of defense is to have educated adults and young people who can foil molesters and who can report this to the authorities,” Finkelhor said.