“One Child at a Time” (subtitled “The Global Fight to Rescue Children from Online Predators”) provides an absorbing behind-the-scenes view of how law enforcement officers and organizations in North America, the UK and around the world are growing increasingly sophisticated at fighting back against the network of predators, abuse and materials in circulation online. Thankfully, the book does not get into overly explicit detail, but is sufficiently clear about the types of abusive situations law enforcement is contending with, and touches with moving tact on the suffering and damage done to victims.

Author Julian Sher focuses on examples of the daring and suspenseful rescues as crimes are being committed, and to the seizures of millions of dollars in the offshore bank accounts of the porn merchants. In some respects, de-emphasizing the gory details and focusing on the action-oriented aspects of this particular form of crime fighting probably makes this more accessible to a broader readership, which is a good thing.

Former Toronto police officer Paul Gillespie was instrumental in pushing for the development of the Child Exploitation Tracking System, described in the book and now being extensively deployed to law enforcement organizations worldwide. Gillespie went on to found the Kids’ Internet Safety Alliance (KINSA, at www.kinsa.net), a well-regarded not-for-profit group that advocates with government and industry on online protection initiatives, and also provides programs targeted to families, teachers and others to build awareness of Internet safety best practices.