Hentai is a form of animated adult pornography that uses Japanese styles of animations called ‘anime’ and ‘manga’. It is essentially cartoon images of a sexually explicit nature. However, our research shows that hentai can go far beyond this original format. Some material can be classified as child sexual abuse imagery, bestiality, and other forms of extreme sexual violence. 

Context is key. Hentai may appear ‘cartoonish’ and therefore child-friendly and easy to dismiss, but it is sexual in nature and can normalise violent, harmful, and illegal content.