“I want to stop every day, but a little voice tells me if a predator doesn’t talk to me, they’ll see a child,” says “Neila Moore,” a mother who tracks pedophiles on the Citizens network in France.
This housekeeper, herself a former victim, is dedicated to online hunting within “Team Moore,” a group formed in 2019 that has dozens of convictions to its credit. “Neila” is her pseudonym.
“It is not necessary to post yourself at the exit of the schools armed with a pack of sweets: the Internet and its networks are such a simple gateway …”, regrets this 38-year-old red-haired Lyonnaise who tells her story in one recently published book “Predators are in your children’s pockets” (Editions Télémaque).
Four years ago, she befriended “Steeve Moore,” a cyber hunter from La Réunion, a French Indian Ocean department, who launched an appeal for mobilization on his blog, outraged by the impunity of hunters on the internet.
A month later, she gives birth to her first avatar on Facebook – 13-year-old Lina. It’s a shock: dozens of adults show up. Below them, after a few friendly exchanges, a predator advances. The first “customer” was connected and “Team Moore” was born.
The method is inspired by Anglo-Saxon collectives, particularly active in England, where “half of the arrests of pedophiles are made by ordinary people,” assures “Neila”.
The modus operandi is immutable: creating fake accounts of young teens with photos, stories, likes and various subscriptions. The magic of the algorithm works: potential adult “friends” appear very quickly, and then compromise.
“Several predators have stated in court that they found their targets thanks to the suggestions of Facebook friends who never gave an official explanation for this malfunction,” regrets “Neila”.
No incentive
The emergence of these citizen groups in France was initially coolly received by the authorities. In 2020, Véronique Béchu from the Central Office for Combating Violence Against People (OCRVP) even declared her “outlawed” and pointed out the danger of her amateurism.
But “the condescending and mocking remarks” in the police stations are gradually fading. Several prosecutors or elected officials, such as Modem Ensemble MP Maud Petit, have provided “precious support”. With their support, “Team Moore” was received this week by Minister Delegate for Digital Jean-Noël Barrot.
Due to the strong media interest, the group, which today has about fifty hunters, receives many applications, which has led them to create an online platform to train about 1,600 cyber trackers worldwide.
The “Team Moore” method has now proven itself, with a few mandatory passages such as credible life scenarios, accompanied by contexts that are suitable for young people in terms of content and frequency.
There are also pitfalls to avoid, such as incitement or identity theft. Otherwise “the file falls into the water”, reveals “Neila”.
Today his book, presented in the form of a newspaper, has to replace the platform and serve as a handbook for citizens who want to get involved. As they wait “for the state to keep its promise to fight online abusers harder and for the punishments for the latter to become tougher,” explains the mother of the family.
“Addictive and Destructive”
Since its inception, Team Moore has brought 130 cases to court, resulting in approximately 80 arrests and approximately 40 convictions in multiple countries. All without outside help. “We want to show that we can do something even without resources, that it’s a question of will,” emphasizes “Neila”.
But hunting down predators can be grueling. When this slender woman says she is “armed” against the sometimes very brutal assaults of criminals, she describes an “addictive as well as destructive” everyday life that “cuts into (her) work and (her) private life”.
Today she relies more on the team and is complying with the cuts demanded by her three children.
According to Ciivise, an independent commission, 160,000 children are victims of incest or sexual violence in France every year. “Neila,” she hopes, “one day the fear will switch sides.”