Ariel Winter has a brand new job.
The 27-year-old actress – who performed Alex Dunphy on ABC’s hit sequence Fashionable Household – dressed up as a blonde 12-year-old woman to nab a high-risk predator.
The Hollywood veteran grew to become part of undercover operations for the nonprofit SOSA – Secure from On-line Intercourse Abuse – for a real crime docuseries on YouTube known as SOSA Undercover.
Ariel pretended to be a 12-year-old to function a decoy in an Oklahoma Metropolis sting operation. Pushed by her personal experiences, the mission is private.
‘It is positively cathartic to be teaming with SOSA, figuring out that I could make a distinction,’ Winter advised DailyMail.com.
‘It may be scary at occasions pretending to be 12 and speaking to older males, but it surely’s validating to place away predators which have been harming kids.
‘Rising up within the leisure business, I have been the woman we try to save lots of. It is important to me to assist defend younger ladies from the experiences I endured in my very own life.’

Ariel Winter has a brand new job. The 27-year-old actress – who performed Alex Dunphy on ABC’s hit sequence Fashionable Household – dressed up as a blonde 12-year-old to nab a high-risk predator. Seen in 2019 in NYC

The Hollywood veteran grew to become part of undercover operations for the nonprofit SOSA – Secure from On-line Intercourse Abuse – for a real crime docuseries on YouTube known as SOSA Undercover
The ubiquity of on-line predators in photo-sharing apps, gaming platforms and social media renders at the moment’s teenagers extra weak than ever. SOSA companions straight with legislation enforcement to determine and arrest little one predators.
Winter advised DailyMail.com that it was a variety of work catching predators.
‘Discovering somebody is difficult as a result of they don’t use their actual title or deal with and we now have to do analysis into who these persons are,’ she advised DailyMail.com. ‘You see a variety of darkish issues if you begin investigating who’s after pre-teen women.
‘I used to be stunned by the amount what number of males had been on the market trying to discuss to younger women who had been 12 or 13. It’s a whole lot of hundreds of males.
‘These males additionally appear like regular, good guys – they don’t appear like predators. They appear like the man next-door and so they’re often married and have kids. The lads appear good as a result of they’ve pets and so they present you photos of their canines. They speak about their on a regular basis life and so they look like candy males. However the fact is that they need to spend time with a 12-year-old woman, they ask inappropriate questions and need to know if mother and father are round.
‘One man was virtually 40-years-old and he wished to take an 11-year-old woman purchasing for a brand new bra. That’s not regular. It’s not good.’
Ariel additionally stated it was ‘wild’ to see that the age of women that grownup males had been drawn to was 12 to 14.
‘This complete expertise has been heartbreaking as a result of I consider how younger these women are and so they’re being approached by a lot older males,’ Winter added.
‘I’m aware of male predators as a result of I labored in Hollywood at a younger age, I began at age 4.


Ariel dressed up as a 12-year-old decoy in an Oklahoma Metropolis sting operation. Pushed by her personal experiences, the mission is private. ‘It is positively cathartic to be teaming with SOSA, figuring out that I could make a distinction,’ Winter advised DailyMail.com

‘It may be scary at occasions pretending to be 12 and taking to older males, but it surely’s validating to place away predators which have been harming kids,’ the Sofia The First star added

‘Rising up within the leisure business, I have been the woman we try to save lots of. It is important to me to assist defend younger ladies from the experiences I endured in my very own life,’ she shared

Winter as a youngster working in Hollywood
‘I don’t wanna say an excessive amount of about it, however by the point I used to be on a laptop computer and mobile phone, I used to be getting inappropriate messages from older males, and it causes trauma.
‘The experiences I had in particular person and on-line as a toddler have affected me so deeply that I’ve needed to go to remedy for it. The film and TV business is a darkish place.’
And he or she feels dangerous for the younger women who go surfing to discover a good friend.
‘Children search for on-line relationship as a result of they’re lonely or bored after which they discover a male and suppose that they’ll hook up with them, no realizing they’re a lot older and are literally predators with dangerous intentions,’ stated Winter.
It is vital for her to do the best factor.
‘I like working with SOSA as a result of it’s ladies serving to ladies and I’ll do it so long as I can,’ she famous.
SOSA’s founder, Roo Powell, added, ‘Ariel is boosting our platform and it means a lot to us as a result of we now have solely 5 full-time staff and we now have a smaller funds than most libraries so we want the assistance.

The ubiquity of on-line predators in photo-sharing apps, gaming platforms and social media renders at the moment’s teenagers extra weak than ever. SOSA companions straight with legislation enforcement to determine and arrest little one predators

Winter advised DailyMail.com that it was a variety of arduous work discovering and catching predators. ‘Discovering somebody is difficult as a result of they don’t use their actual title or deal with and we now have to do analysis into who these persons are,’ she advised DailyMail.com

The SOSA wall is filled with arrested on-line predators trying to seduce kids

Ariel seen in her pc working arduous with SOSA staff members

‘You see a variety of darkish issues if you begin investigating who’s after pre-teen women. I used to be stunned by the amount what number of males had been on the market trying to discuss to younger women who had been 12 and underneath. It’s a whole lot of hundreds of males,’ stated the previous Disney star
‘Ariel is getting the phrase out about SOSA. She has been superb. She is going to do something to assist us. She helps take out the trash and she or he’ll eat chilly cheeseburgers with us,’ stated Roo.
In 2023, the Nationwide Middle for Lacking & Exploited Youngsters reported over 36.2 million circumstances of suspected little one sexual exploitation—a 12% enhance from the earlier 12 months.
Regardless of devoted ICAC (Web Crimes Towards Youngsters) process forces, most native businesses lack the capability to pose as minors—and predators are getting smarter, continuously in search of proof that the kids they aim are actual.
SOSA’s skilled staff creates practical backstories and environments — together with a totally staged ‘decoy home’ — permitting their minor personas to answer predators on video calls, construct belief, and supply legislation enforcement with the essential proof wanted to safe arrests.
SOSA’s influence extends past legislation enforcement— they’ve a extremely engaged viewers of over 1M followers on Instagram (@sosatogether) and TikTok (@sosatogether), the place they increase consciousness, share insights and academic assets, in addition to behind-the-scenes content material to empower mother and father and youths.

‘These males additionally appear like regular, good guys – they don’t appear like predators. They appear like the man next-door and so they’re often married and have kids. The lads appear good they’ve canines they present you photos of their canines. They speak about their on a regular basis life and so they look like candy males,’ she defined

Winter added, ‘However the fact is that they need to spend time with a 12-year-old woman, they ask inappropriate questions and need to know if mother and father are round. One man was virtually 40-years-old and he wished to take an 11-year-old woman purchasing for a brand new bra. That’s not regular. It’s not good.’ Seen in 2024
SOSA UNDERCOVER premiered final month on YouTube. Be a part of over 100,000 early subscribers for real-time updates and new episodes each two weeks. Free entry is obtainable, however for simply $5.99/month, you will unlock uncensored full episodes, unique bonus content material, and an ad-free expertise — multi function place. Subscribe now on YouTube.
SOSA Undercover is a real crime docuseries that follows the high-stakes undercover investigations of SOSA (Secure from On-line Intercourse Abuse) as they work straight with legislation enforcement to trace and apprehend on-line predators.
In contrast to self-proclaimed ‘predator hunters,’ SOSA operates strictly inside authorized pointers, partnering with ICAC (Web Crimes Towards Youngsters) legislation enforcement officers and district attorneys to make sure their collected proof is totally prosecutable.

Winter as Alex, Ty Burrell as Phil, Sarah Hyland as Haley, Julie Bowen as Claire and Nolan Gould as Luke on Fashionable Household
Along with documentary-style episodes protecting actual circumstances, SOSA Undercover will share instructional content material and behind-the-scenes extras, together with livestreams with the staff, deleted scenes, and extra.
SOSA is a nonprofit group devoted to defending minors from on-line sexual exploitation by collaborating with legislation enforcement to conduct undercover operations. The group’s work is concentrated on stopping on-line little one exploitation, educating communities, and advocating for stronger protecting measures. SOSA has constructed a extremely engaged on-line neighborhood, with over 1 million followers on Instagram (@sosatogether) and TikTok (@sosatogether) the place they supply assets, security ideas, and real-time insights into their efforts to guard kids from on-line predators.
SOSA’s founder, Roo Powell, is a legislation enforcement advisor and material knowledgeable. She travels throughout the nation to conduct undercover operations and practice legislation enforcement, in addition to advocate for more practical laws and educate mother and father and communities about holding their youngsters protected on-line.
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