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Seoul to launch AI-based system to combat online grooming of minors

Published: 02 Dec. 2025, 10:26 Updated: 03 Dec. 2025, 14:12

An illustration depicting child sex abuse [JOONGANG ILBO]

As crimes targeting children and teenagers for online grooming continue to rise, the Seoul Metropolitan Government is set to establish the country's first AI-based response system.

The Seoul government and the Seoul Institute announced Monday that they will develop "Seoul Ansim Eye," an AI system that detects online risks around the clock to protect minors from online grooming crimes, by the end of the year.

Online grooming refers to sexual crimes in which an offender contacts a minor online, builds intimacy and then engages in sexual abuse or exploitation. As smartphones have become universal and online communication more common, grooming attempts targeting minors have increased.

A survey by the Seoul Foundation of Women and Family found that 19 percent of 2,316 students from fifth graders to high school seniors in Seoul reported having experienced online grooming attempts.

Seoul Ansim Eye will detect sexual solicitation and exploitation attempts occurring on social media and online chat rooms commonly used by children and teenagers, operating 24 hours a day in real time.

For instance, the system detects conversations such as “Want to send a photo?” or “Should we video chat?” It also identifies statements like “If you don’t like home, why not run away?” and “You get allowance and do what the other person wants.”

A Seoul city official said the system goes beyond keyword spotting and uses a multimodal, lightweight language model, small Large Language Model, to analyze slang, abbreviations and continuous conversational context.

Activist against online child pornography performs in front of the Supreme Court, southern Seoul, in October 2021 before a ruling on a high profile online sexual exploitation trial was made. [YONHAP]

Once the AI picks up a risk signal, it immediately sends an alert to a victim support agency. Centers such as the DasiHamkke Center can then intervene directly in the conversation to stop harm at an early stage. The centers can provide immediate guidance through professional counselors and support both counseling and investigations. Accounts that repeatedly attempt grooming can be reported or referred to authorities.

Seoul became the first in the country to adopt AI to monitor and swiftly remove online digital sex crime videos in 2023. The city developed AI-based facial age-estimation technology to help identify and delete child and youth sexual exploitation material in 2024.

The city will hold a public forum on Tuesday at City Hall’s Seosomun Building 1 to raise awareness about online grooming and discuss response measures.

Kim Joon-cheol, a senior researcher at the Seoul Institute, will present on AI-based online grooming detection and pre-emptive response technology, while Kim Bo-hwa, a senior researcher at the Seoul Foundation of Women and Family, will present on the current state of online grooming involving minors in Seoul and related policy directions.

“Digital sex crimes continue to evolve, and sexual exploitation through online grooming has been on the rise in recent years,” said Ma Chae-sook, Deputy Mayor for the Women and Family Office at the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Ma added that "because many sex crimes against minors stem from grooming, the city will strengthen efforts to prevent such crimes in advance."

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY MOON HEE-CHUL [[email protected]]