The number of teenagers and younger children reporting digital sex crimes in Korea jumped nearly 30-fold in just seven years, underscoring the growing vulnerability of young people to sexual exploitation online. According to data from the state-run National Center for Digital Sexual Crime Response, the number of victims aged 19 or younger who sought help from the center last year was 3,052, up from 111 in 2018 when the organization began collecting relevant data. It was the first time the annual figure of reported victims in that age group exceeded 3,000, reflecting a concerning pattern that digital sex crimes aided by emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) are increasingly affecting younger people. Minors and people in their 20s accounted for more than 77 percent of all victims. Younger people are among the most active users of social media and online services, which can increase their exposure to digital sex crime risks, according to the center. Meanwhile, the overall volume of assistance provided by the center also surged, rising from roughly 33,000 cases in 2018 t