June 2, 2022 – The Tech Coalition launched Trust: Voluntary Framework for Industry Transparency at the WeProtect Global Alliance Summit in Brussels.
Summary
Developed by industry following a consultation process with civil society and governments, the Trust framework provides flexible guidance to tech companies seeking to build trust and demonstrate accountability by providing transparency reporting concerning their efforts to combat online child sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA).
July 23, 2024 – When Trust was first launched, the Tech Coalition promised to revisit it in 2 years. Accordingly, the Framework has been updated to account for changes in the regulatory landscape, the emergence of new technologies and harm types, and firsthand learnings from industry adoption of the Trust framework.
About the Trust framework
The Trust framework helps technology companies develop and improve transparency reporting on child sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA).
It provides a principles-based approach rather than a single reporting template, recognizing that companies and services differ in their products, users, risks, technology, and maturity.
The framework is designed to help companies explain their policies and practices, describe the systems and processes they use to address CSEA, and report meaningful data on outcomes.
The framework aims to:
- encourage companies to provide CSEA transparency reporting;
- support companies developing and improving their transparency reports; and
- increase consistency across reporting to support information sharing and accountability.
Principles for CSEA transparency reporting
The framework sets out five principles companies can use when developing their approach:
Support trust and accountability
Reporting should help people understand a company’s policies, decisions, and actions and support continuous improvement.
Reflect the nature of the service
Different products and services face different risks and have different capabilities. Reporting should be proportionate to the service, risk profile, practices, and technology.
Reflect service maturity
Companies may be at different stages of developing their child safety and reporting capabilities. Transparency reporting can develop as those capabilities mature.
Report regularly and evolve over time
Companies should aim to report at least annually and provide enough consistency for readers to understand changes and trends over time.
Protect privacy and safety
Transparency should not compromise individual privacy or provide information that could help offenders circumvent safety measures.
What should a CSEA transparency report include?
The framework recommends organizing reporting around three areas:
Policies and practices
Explain the company’s overall approach to CSEA, including relevant policies, prohibited content and conduct, reporting processes, appeals, partnerships, and cross-industry collaboration.
Processes and systems
Describe how policies are put into practice, including prevention and detection measures, risk assessment, user reporting, mitigation, moderation, and enforcement.
Outcomes
Provide data that helps readers understand the results of those policies, systems, and processes. Where possible, outcome data should be downloadable and supported by appropriate explanation and context.
Recommended starting metrics
The framework recommends that companies begin with three core measures:
- CSEA identified and actioned;
- user accounts identified and actioned; and
- reports made to relevant external authorities.
Companies can build on these with additional metrics relating to discovery, action, reporting, law enforcement requests, appeals, and other insights, depending on their service and reporting maturity.
Download the full Trust frameworkFrequently asked questions
What is CSEA transparency reporting?
CSEA transparency reporting explains how a company addresses child sexual exploitation and abuse on its services. It can describe the company’s policies, the processes and systems used to apply them, and data showing the outcomes of those efforts.
Who is the Trust framework for?
The framework is intended primarily for trust and safety teams and others responsible for developing transparency reporting on CSEA. Its flexible approach allows companies to adapt reporting to their service, risk profile, practices, technology, and level of maturity.
Why should technology companies publish CSEA transparency reports?
The framework identifies three purposes: explaining company policies and actions; supporting accountability and trust by showing how those policies are implemented; and sharing knowledge and meaningful data that can strengthen the wider response to CSEA.
Can transparency reports be used to compare technology companies?
Not always. Companies differ in their services, users, risks, policies, and reporting approaches. The framework notes that transparency reports cannot always be directly compared and should not, by themselves, be treated as estimates of the overall prevalence of CSEA.
What metrics should companies include in CSEA transparency reports?
The framework recommends starting with data on CSEA identified and actioned, user accounts identified and actioned, and reports made to relevant external authorities. Companies can provide additional metrics on discovery, enforcement actions, reporting, appeals, law enforcement requests, and other areas where relevant.
How often should companies publish transparency reports?
Companies should aim to report regularly and at least annually. The framework encourages companies to state clearly which reporting period their data covers and, where possible, provide comparable information so readers can understand trends over time.
Does every company need to report the same information?
No. The framework is principles-based because companies and services differ in their risk profiles, functionality, technology, and maturity. Not every recommended metric or reporting element will be relevant or possible for every service.
How was the Trust framework developed?
Tech Coalition members developed the framework, which was approved by the Tech Coalition Board in May 2022. Its development included input from civil society, academics, governments, and other companies through a consultation facilitated by the WeProtect Global Alliance. The framework was reviewed in 2024 to reflect implementation experience, technological developments, and changes in the regulatory landscape.
