Law enforcement agencies from 17 countries spanning Latin America and Europe have successfully concluded **International Effort Confluencia**, an **INTERPOL**-coordinated operation resulting in 95 arrests. This significant joint action, comprising four distinct law enforcement operations between March and September 2026, aimed squarely at disrupting networks distributing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) via online messaging platforms. **Stephen Fry**, Executive Director of **INTERPOL Investigation Support**, emphasized the urgency of such collaborations: "Effective cross-border cooperation between law enforcement and the private sector has never been more urgent. Behind every file is a child who was abused, and who is revictimized every time that image recirculates. Wherever offenders move, we have to move faster." Investigators executed 127 search warrants, leading to the apprehension of nearly 95 suspects. Disturbingly, the operation also led to the rescue of a five-year-old victim whose parent was actively producing and selling abusive material online. Key arrests included an individual in Ecuador found with approximately 15GB of abuse images and over 4,000 files, and the administrator of a CSAM dissemination group with more than 700 users, arrested in Panama. In Argentina, another suspect, allegedly in contact with over 260 girls globally, is now accused of sextortion, having reportedly threatened victims who resisted his demands for increasingly explicit content.  **INTERPOL** highlighted the evolving threat landscape: "These platforms are increasingly used to groom children, coordinate abuse, connect offenders and receive payment for illegal content. They also enable the recirculation of abuse content, resulting in continued revictimization of children." The organization anticipates that material seized during the investigation will facilitate further identification of offenders and at-risk children, leading to additional safeguarding measures. This operation builds on previous successes. In February of last year, **Operation Cumberland** saw the arrest of 25 suspects linked to a large criminal ring distributing AI-generated CSAM. April 2025 also marked the takedown of **Kidflix**, one of the largest dark web CSAM platforms, by German cybercrime prosecutors, resulting in 79 arrests and the identification of 1,393 suspects. Additionally, in June 2025, a separate joint operation by European and Latin American authorities led to 20 arrests for CSAM distribution via instant messaging groups. More recently, in March, **Operation Alice**, supported by **Europol**, successfully shut down over 373,000 dark web sites offering fake CSAM packages.