EXCLUSIVE Modern Family star Ariel Winter, 27, talks 'scary' move of posing as a 12-year-old decoy to nab a sexual predator
The 27-year-old actress - who played Alex Dunphy on ABC's hit series Modern Family - dressed up as a blonde 12-year-old girl to nab a high-risk predator.
The Hollywood veteran became a part of undercover operations for the nonprofit SOSA - Safe from Online Sex Abuse - for a true crime docuseries on YouTube called SOSA Undercover.
Ariel pretended to be a 12-year-old to serve as a decoy in an Oklahoma City sting operation. Driven by her own experiences, the mission is personal.
'It's definitely cathartic to be teaming with SOSA, knowing that I can make a difference,' Winter told DailyMail.com.
'It can be scary at times pretending to be 12 and talking to older men, but it's validating to put away predators that have been harming children.
'Growing up in the entertainment industry, I've been the girl we are trying to save. It's vital to me to help protect young women from the experiences I endured in my own life.'
The ubiquity of online predators in photo-sharing apps, gaming platforms and social media renders today's teens more vulnerable than ever. SOSA partners directly with law enforcement to identify and arrest child predators.
Winter told DailyMail.com that it was a lot of work catching predators.
'Finding someone is hard because they don't use their real name or handle and we have to do research into who these people are,' she told DailyMail.com. 'You see a lot of dark things when you start investigating who is after pre-teen girls.
'I was surprised by the volume how many men were out there looking to talk to young girls who were 12 or 13. It's hundreds of thousands of men.
'These men also look like normal, nice guys - they don't look like predators. They look like the guy next-door and they're usually married and have children. The men seem nice because they have pets and they show you pictures of their dogs. They talk about their everyday life and they seem like sweet men. But the truth is they want to spend time with a 12-year-old girl, they ask inappropriate questions and want to know if parents are around.
'One guy was almost 40-years-old and he wanted to take an 11-year-old girl shopping for a new bra. That's not normal. It's not good.'
Ariel also said it was 'wild' to see that the age of girls that adult men were attracted to was 12 to 14.
'This whole experience has been heartbreaking because I think of how young these girls are and they're being approached by much older men,' Winter added.
'I am familiar with male predators because I worked in Hollywood at a young age, I started at age four.
'It can be scary at times pretending to be 12 and taking to older men, but it's validating to put away predators that have been harming children,' the Sofia The First star added
'I don't wanna say too much about it, but by the time I was on a laptop and cell phone, I was getting inappropriate messages from older men, and it causes trauma.
'The experiences I had in person and online as a child have affected me so deeply that I've had to go to therapy for it. The movie and TV industry is a dark place.'
And she feels bad for the young girls who go online to find a friend.
'Kids look for online relationship because they're lonely or bored and then they find a male and think that they can connect to them, no realizing they are so much older and are actually predators with bad intentions,' said Winter.
It's important for her to do the right thing.
'I like working with SOSA because it's women helping women and I'll do it as long as I can,' she noted.
SOSA's founder, Roo Powell, added, 'Ariel is boosting our platform and it means so much to us because we have only five full-time employees and we have a smaller budget than most libraries so we need the help.
The SOSA wall is full of arrested online predators looking to seduce children
Ariel seen in her computer working hard with SOSA team members
'You see a lot of dark things when you start investigating who is after pre-teen girls. I was surprised by the volume how many men were out there looking to talk to young girls who were 12 and under. It's hundreds of thousands of men,' said the former Disney star
'Ariel is getting the word out about SOSA. She has been amazing. She will do anything to help us. She helps take out the trash and she'll eat cold cheeseburgers with us,' said Roo.
In 2023, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children reported over 36.2 million cases of suspected child sexual exploitation—a 12% increase from the previous year.
Despite dedicated ICAC (Internet Crimes Against Children) task forces, most local agencies lack the capacity to pose as minors—and predators are getting smarter, constantly looking for proof that the teens they target are real.
SOSA's experienced team creates realistic backstories and environments — including a fully staged 'decoy house' — allowing their minor personas to respond to predators on video calls, build trust, and provide law enforcement with the critical evidence needed to secure arrests.
SOSA's impact extends beyond law enforcement— they have a highly engaged audience of over 1M followers on Instagram (@sosatogether) and TikTok (@sosatogether), where they raise awareness, share insights and educational resources, as well as behind-the-scenes content to empower parents and teens.
SOSA UNDERCOVER premiered last month on YouTube. Join over 100,000 early subscribers for real-time updates and new episodes every two weeks. Free access is available, but for just $5.99/month, you'll unlock uncensored full episodes, exclusive bonus content, and an ad-free experience — all in one place. Subscribe now on YouTube.
SOSA Undercover is a true crime docuseries that follows the high-stakes undercover investigations of SOSA (Safe from Online Sex Abuse) as they work directly with law enforcement to track and apprehend online predators.
Unlike self-proclaimed 'predator hunters,' SOSA operates strictly within legal guidelines, partnering with ICAC (Internet Crimes Against Children) law enforcement officers and district attorneys to ensure their collected evidence is fully prosecutable.
In addition to documentary-style episodes covering real cases, SOSA Undercover will share educational content and behind-the-scenes extras, including livestreams with the team, deleted scenes, and more.
SOSA is a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting minors from online sexual exploitation by collaborating with law enforcement to conduct undercover operations. The organization's work is focused on preventing online child exploitation, educating communities, and advocating for stronger protective measures. SOSA has built a highly engaged online community, with over 1 million followers on Instagram (@sosatogether) and TikTok (@sosatogether) where they provide resources, safety tips, and real-time insights into their efforts to protect children from online predators.
SOSA's founder, Roo Powell, is a law enforcement consultant and subject matter expert. She travels across the country to conduct undercover operations and train law enforcement, as well as advocate for more effective legislation and educate parents and communities about keeping their kids safe online.
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