This study by Shihning Chou, Kevin Browne and Melanie Kirkaldy investigated whether intercountry adoption agencies on the internet upheld the principles of the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child (UNCRC 1989) and the Hague Convention (1993). A systematic search on the UK-based Google search engine was carried out. The search yielded 2,383 hits, of which 116 were adoption agencies. There was a positive correlation between agencies using terminology that promoted children as a commodity, rather than as individuals in need, and those displaying photographs with personal information. If these views are accepted, it means that it can be estimated that at least 38 per cent of the agencies were in breach of the UNCRC and the Hague Convention.
