Gigantic blow against child pornography: Darknet platform Kidflix arrested!

Gigantic blow against child pornography: Darknet platform Kidflix arrested!

A significant operation of international investigative authorities has led to the breakdown of a platform for child pornographic material in the Darknet. Bavarian investigators discovered the streaming platform "Kidflix", which counted 1.8 million registered users worldwide. This operation, coordinated by Europol, included raids in 31 countries and led to the identification of almost 1,400 suspects. In Germany, the authorities are investigating 103 people, including passive and active users of the platform.

The investigation against "Kidflix" has been running since 2022. Over 91,000 videos were available on the platform, whose total term is 6,288 hours. On average, three and a half videos were reloaded per hour. The increase in user numbers was alarming, with around 190,000 new registrations between April 2022 and the present time. Despite the high number of users, the investigators were able to identify 1,393 suspects worldwide. These identifications were particularly challenging because many users try to protect their identity through veiling techniques.

coordinated by Europol

The coordination and implementation of the raids took place by Europol, which also reported over 79 arrests worldwide. In Germany, 96 searches took place in 13 federal states, while nine searches were carried out at various suspects in Bavaria. These implementations took place in cities such as Augsburg, Munich and Nuremberg, where a total of twelve suspects are resident.

Particularly serious cases were documented in North Rhine-Westphalia, Brandenburg and Saxony, where several children had to be taken into care. A 30-year-old man who was arrested on January 24, 2025 is said to have consumed child pornographic material. Two minor children from his household were then handed over to the youth welfare office.

future investigations and challenges

The investigation against the operators of the platform continues to continue. Despite the intensive work of the investigative authorities, the operator has so far remained unidentified. The tracking of the payments, especially when using cryptocurrencies and mixing services, was a central challenge in the process.

Overall, this case illustrates the persistent efforts against the sexual abuse of children on the Internet. The operation is part of a broader initiative that focuses on combating the sexual abuse of children on the Internet, in which a total of 38 countries took part from March 10th to 23rd, 2025 to exchange information. While the "Kidflix" platform has now been switched off, the investigators remain committed to identifying all those responsible and to fully accountable.