Pedobear

Pedobear's origins are Japanize and he came into popularity on the image trading site imageboard 4chan. Pedobear was used to point out when someone posted a picture of a girl/woman considered too young, not prepubescent, just "too young" for that site. Apparently, the participants there incorrectly believed that men who posted pictures of 16 or 17 year old girls and young looking women were pedophiles. However, it may have simply been a joke used to mock those who found younger women desirable.

Commonly, Pedobear was used on the internet as joke or in a humorous/satirical manner however controversy arose when law enforcement and pedophobics mistakenly and irrationally began believing that Pedobear was a pedosexual icon or mascot. Up until the point where the mainstream media began to publicize Pedobear as a “pedophile Icon”, most people in the Boylove community were either completely unaware or only slightly aware of the existence of this graphic.

Hysteria

The hysterical beliefs continue as demonstrated by this recent addition to Wikipedia:” In September 2010 cosplay participants dressed as the character were accused of being pedophiles, after the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department issued a warning that Pedobear was a sign of the presence of pedophiles and other people with inappropriate sexual behavior, and suggested that Pedobear was a kind of mascot among pedophiles. Law enforcement officials in San Diego later sent a warning to local media, warning parents that the image can indicate the presence of pedophiles. It also issued a bulletin:

"Since the Comic Con, law enforcement in San Diego... has come across PedoBear's image in situations during which they were contacting those that exploit and/or abuse children. (...) The intention of this bulletin is (...) [to] alert citizens that PedoBear's presence may be an indicator of the presence of individuals who have a predilection to sexually inappropiate, or even, assaultive behaviour. While not an absolute, the image of PedoBear should be a sign that you should use caution with whatever situation you are in or the individuals involved." Public Safety Bulletin. A Seemingly Innocent Menace. An introduction to "PEDO BEAR"(Page 2)

In March 2012, a primary school in Christchurch, New Zealand was notified by the public of the meaning of a student-created poster portraying Pedobear in a classroom window. The poster was left displayed to the public for some time.

On December 15, 2011, a citywide alert was issued by the Pierre, South Dakota Police Department after images of Pedobear have been sighted in certain parts of the city.