Manila, May 13 -- The Philippine National Police (PNP), through its Anti-Cybercrime Group (ACG), has rescued 18 minors in a series of operations targeting harmful online activities from Jan. 1 to April 30.

The PNP said Wednesday the operations stemmed from intelligence information received by the ACG, an active member of the Anti-Terrorism Fusion Group, regarding online users engaged in harmful discussions and self-harm themes associated with violent extremist content.

Acting on the information gathered, cyber investigators conducted online monitoring and case build-up operations that led to 12 focused rescue operations in various areas nationwide.

Authorities discovered that some minors were being exposed to harmful online communities...