A Forsyth County teenager was released to his parents Tuesday after his arrest in a statewide child pornography sweep, authorities said.

Officials with the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office declined to identify the boy, saying only that he is 14. He has been charged with a juvenile complaint of sexual exploitation of children.

Sheriff’s Inv. Jeff Roe, who is on the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, said the arrest came after a search of the boy’s home.

“The investigation yielded that the male juvenile possessed images of child pornography,” he said, adding that authorities seized the boy’s computer.

Sheriff’s Lt. Col. Gene Moss said some of the images were of children who appeared to be as young as 7 engaged in various forms of sexual conduct.

Moss and Roe said the boy’s parents were not aware of his activities.

According to a GBI report, more than 40 search warrants were served Tuesday throughout the state as part of “Operation Shattered Innocence.”

The searches were the result of a three-month investigation, the report said, and involved 17 local and three federal agencies, as well as Georgia's attorney general and the state’s three U.S. Attorney’s offices.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Bill Franco said authorities investigate an average of five to six child pornography cases a month in Forsyth County.

“Our biggest fear is they’re viewing child porn and fantasizing about it and may try to reach out to a child,” Franco said. “There are cases where we do make child molestation arrests and find child porn on their computers as well.”

Roe said computer pornography is just one aspect of a growing trend among youngsters.

“The other aspect is what they’re referring to now as 'sexting,'” he said.

Roe explained that “sexting” refers to sending nude or semi-nude images from cell phones.

He said he has investigated "sexting" cases that involved children as young as middle school age.

Roe explained that the task force conducts both proactive and reactive investigations that center on computer child pornography and child sexual exploitation through the Internet or Internet-based technologies.

“It’s a constantly changing field and we have to try to stay one step ahead to the best of our ability,” Roe said.

He said his task force's responsibilities also include educating the public about Internet safety. Members have spoken at local schools, businesses and churches.