'I live in fear': 1.5 million Pakistani children sexually exploited online

Pakistani teenager Zara Shah says she was sexually exploited online after a stranger approached her while she was gaming in Islamabad. A UNICEF report estimates 1.5 million children in Pakistan experienced online sexual abuse in one year, with most perpetrators known to victims. The report says many victims stayed silent because of stigma and fear, while Punjab passed a resolution to bar under-16s from social media.

The UNICEF report said around 85 percent of perpetrators were known to the victims, who were aged between 12 and 17.

In Pakistan, 71 percent of victims did not tell anyone, and no child surveyed reported the abuse through police, helplines, or social workers.

Around 44 percent of reported abuse was entirely online, with Snapchat and WhatsApp among the most common settings.

Published Sep 21, 2026 10:46 am KST

Updated Sep 21, 2026 11:03 am KST

Children ride in a loader rickshaw during a rally marking Al-Mawlid Al-Nabawi Al-Sharif, the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad, in Larkana, Pakistan, Aug. 26. EPA-Yonhap

ISLAMABAD— Pakistani teenager Zara Shah was targeted by a stranger while playing a computer game, drawn into a conversation that would expose her to terrifying online sexual exploitation.

Zara, whose name has been changed by AFP for safety reasons, is one of an estimated 1.5 million children in Pakistan who experienced online sexual abuse in one year, according to a report published by the UN children's agency this month.

"We started chatting while playing an online game, and he began acting like a friend. Later, he wanted to meet and, after, started asking me for nudes," 17-year-old Shah said.

"When I refused, he threatened to find my family online and tell them that we had been talking," she added.

According to the UNICEF report, around 85 percent of perpetrators were known to the victims, aged between 12 and 17.

"The abuse may start with a friendly conversation, a gaming interaction, a promise of gifts, money or romance," Daniel Kardefelt, lead author of the global UNICEF report, told AFP.

"Perpetrators may spend months building trust using information that they find on social media," Kardefelt said.

In Muslim-majority Pakistan, 71 percent of victims did not tell anyone, according to the UNICEF report, while no child surveyed reported the abuse through formal channels -- including police, helplines or social workers.

Their silence was mostly because of stigma, shame and fears over how their families or society may react.

"Around 44 percent of reported abuse was entirely online, with Snapchat and WhatsApp among the most common settings," said Mehek Naeem, director of PAHCHAAN, a children's rights organization based in the eastern city of Lahore.

Girls can face heightened risks of sexual extortion in the conservative society, which can lead to restrictions on their mobility or withdrawal from school.

For Zara, the threat of being exposed to her family was enough to keep her silent.

"I could have been stopped from going to school or leaving the house altogether," she said.

"Staying quiet felt like the better option than speaking up. But anxiety kills me every day."

- Loopholes, 'no implementation' -

With around 74 percent of children aged 12 to 17 in Pakistan estimated by UNICEF to be internet users, concerns over online safety are growing as their access to digital platforms expands.

Echoing other policies around the world, the provincial government in Punjab this month passed a resolution to bar children under 16 from using social media.

However, it has faced opposition.

"I disagree with the ban," said Usama Khilji, a digital rights activist.

"It will be a challenge to implement, and children can circumvent the ban through VPNs. Children have the right of freedom of expression, and a ban takes that away," he said.

Pakistan has a legal framework addressing tech-facilitated offences against children, but "there is no implementation", said Tahira Afrasiyab, a spokesperson for non-profit organization Muslim Hands.

And, according to experts, there are loopholes in existing laws.

Human rights lawyer Salman Afridi said this issue shows how "economic vulnerability can be weaponised" for amounts as small as 10,000 Pakistani rupees ($36) in exchange for the production of sexual content.

"What we are seeing is the use of technology to facilitate an entire chain of grooming, inducement, coercion, blackmail, production, distribution and commercialisation," he said.

"There is a strong basis for describing this as a commercial ecosystem of exploitation," Afridi added.

For Zara and many others like her, the consequences of an encounter that began with an online game remain difficult to escape.

"I was, and am, scared," she said. "I live in fear."

巴基斯坦少女扎拉·沙阿称，她在伊斯兰堡上网时，一名陌生人接近她，导致她遭到网络性侵。联合国儿童基金会的一份报告估计，巴基斯坦每年有150万儿童遭受网络性虐待，其中大多数施害者是受害者认识的人。报告指出，许多受害者由于社会污名和恐惧而保持沉默，而旁遮普邦则通过了一项决议，禁止16岁以下未成年人使用社交媒体。

联合国儿童基金会的报告称，约 85% 的施暴者是受害者认识的人，受害者年龄在 12 岁至 17 岁之间。

在巴基斯坦，71% 的受害者没有告诉任何人，接受调查的儿童中没有一人通过警察、​​求助热线或社会工作者报告虐待事件。

报告的虐待事件中，约有 44% 完全发生在网络上，其中 Snapchat 和 WhatsApp 是最常见的平台。

发布于2026年9月21日上午10:46（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年9月21日上午11:03（韩国标准时间）

8月26日，在巴基斯坦拉尔卡纳，孩子们乘坐装载人力车参加纪念先知穆罕默德诞辰日（圣纪节）的集会。（图片来源：EPA-Yonhap）

伊斯兰堡——巴基斯坦少女扎拉·沙阿在玩电脑游戏时被陌生人盯上，并被卷入一场对话，这场对话使她遭受了可怕的网络性剥削。

出于安全考虑，法新社更改了 Zara 的名字。根据联合国儿童基金会本月发布的一份报告，巴基斯坦约有 150 万儿童在一年内遭受了网络性虐待。

“我们是在玩网络游戏的时候开始聊天的，他一开始表现得像个朋友。后来，他想和我见面，之后就开始问我要裸照，”17岁的沙阿说。

“当我拒绝时，他威胁要在网上找到我的家人，告诉他们我们一直在交谈，”她补充道。

根据联合国儿童基金会的报告，约 85% 的施暴者是受害者认识的人，受害者年龄在 12 岁至 17 岁之间。

“虐待可能始于友好的交谈、游戏互动、礼物、金钱或浪漫的承诺，”联合国儿童基金会全球报告的主要作者丹尼尔·卡德费尔特告诉法新社。

卡德费尔特说：“犯罪分子可能会花费数月时间，利用他们在社交媒体上找到的信息来建立信任。”

根据联合国儿童基金会的报告，在穆斯林占多数的巴基斯坦，71% 的受害者没有告诉任何人，而接受调查的儿童中没有一人通过正式渠道（包括警察、求助热线或社会工作者）报告虐待事件。

他们的沉默主要是因为耻辱感、羞愧感以及对家人或社会反应的恐惧。

“据报道，约 44% 的虐待事件完全发生在网络上，其中 Snapchat 和 WhatsApp 是最常见的平台，”总部位于东部城市拉合尔的儿童权利组织 PAHCHAAN 的主任 Mehek Naeem 说。

在保守的社会中，女孩可能面临更高的性勒索风险，这可能导致她们的行动受到限制或辍学。

对扎拉来说，害怕被家人发现就足以让她保持沉默。

“我本来可能被禁止上学，甚至完全不能出门，”她说。

“保持沉默似乎比开口说话要好。但焦虑每天都在折磨着我。”

漏洞，“未实施”——

据联合国儿童基金会估计，巴基斯坦 12 至 17 岁儿童中约有 74% 是互联网用户，随着他们接触数字平台的机会增加，人们对网络安全的担忧也日益加剧。

与世界其他地区的政策相呼应，旁遮普省政府本月通过了一项决议，禁止 16 岁以下儿童使用社交媒体。

然而，它也面临着反对意见。

数字权利活动家乌萨马·希尔吉表示：“我不同意这项禁令。”

他说：“这项禁令实施起来会很困难，而且孩子们可以通过VPN绕过禁令。孩子们有言论自由的权利，而禁令剥夺了这种权利。”

巴基斯坦有法律框架来应对利用科技手段侵害儿童的犯罪行为，但“却没有得到执行”，非营利组织“穆斯林之手”的发言人塔希拉·阿弗拉西亚布说。

而且，据专家称，现行法律存在漏洞。

人权律师萨尔曼·阿夫里迪表示，这个问题表明，即使金额低至 10,000 巴基斯坦卢比（36 美元），也可以利用“经济脆弱性”来换取制作色情内容。

他说：“我们看到的是利用科技来促进从诱骗、诱导、胁迫、敲诈勒索到生产、分销和商业化的整个链条。”

阿弗里迪补充说：“有充分的理由将其描述为一种商业剥削生态系统。”

对于 Zara 和许多像她一样的人来说，一场始于网络游戏的邂逅所带来的后果仍然难以摆脱。

“我过去很害怕，现在也很害怕，”她说。“我生活在恐惧之中。”