Tech Made Simple

Hot Topics: How to Fix Bluetooth Pairing Problems | Complete Guide to Facebook Privacy | How to Block Spam Calls | Snapchat Symbol Meaning

author photo

Google's Own Email Scan Helps Nab a Child Predator

by on August 04, 2014
in Computer Safety & Support, News, Computers and Software, Family and Parenting, Blog, Privacy :: 0 comments

Techlicious editors independently review products. To help support our mission, we may earn affiliate commissions from links contained on this page.

Criminal in handcuffsA Houston man has been arrested on child pornography charges after Google’s own analysis of his email revealed explicit images of minors, KHOU 11 is reporting.

According to police, Google’s internal auditing detected inappropriate images of a young girl in an email that 41-year-old John Henry Skillern sent to a friend. Google alerted the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, who then contacted police. Police used the information to obtain a search warrant, which led to the discovery of more pictures across the man’s numerous electronic devices.

Skillern did not provide any public clues about his child porn habits. Only Google knew his secret, likely via an automatic scan that matched “fingerprinted” photos in his Gmail account to known child abuse images in a national database.

“He was trying to keep it inside his email,” Detective David Nettles of the Houston Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce told KHOU. “I can’t see that information, I can’t see that photo, but Google can.”

Skillern faces one charge of possessing child pornography and one charge of promotion of child pornography. He is currently being held on $200,000 bond.

For more on protecting your children from predators, cyberbullies and other threats, read up on these four ways to keep kids safe online.

[Criminal in handcuffs via Shutterstock]


Discussion loading

Love getting helpful tech tips? Subscribe to our free newsletter!

Home | About | Meet the Team | Contact Us
Media Kit | Newsletter Sponsorships
Accessibility Statement
Terms of Use | Privacy & Cookie Policy

Techlicious participates in affiliate programs, including the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, which provide a small commission from some, but not all, of the "click-thru to buy" links contained in our articles. These click-thru links are determined after the article has been written, based on price and product availability — the commissions do not impact our choice of recommended product, nor the price you pay. When you use these links, you help support our ongoing editorial mission to provide you with the best product recommendations.

© Techlicious LLC.