Since 1990, there has been at least 2,000 converts to Christianity. Those converts who become known to the secret police are called in for questioning and then turned over to their families or the local Muslim clerics. In many instances, the converts experience harsher treatment at the hands of the family and Muslim leaders than by the police. While there have been a number of reported cases of violent abuse against converts in an attempt to force them to recant their Christian faith, there is no evidence that the police have offered assistance or protection to converts. ICC discovered that there is widespread fear of Egypt's secret police.
Converts are especially sensitive to the watchful eyes of the secret police.
The secret police use informants to monitor church activities and are especially interested in gathering information on converts. In one reported incident, a young Muslim woman who had converted to Christianity was held against her will by a Muslim Sheik and two others. After a struggle, she managed to escape. She now is in hiding. When the ICC team asked Christians to comment about similar statements, the reply was always met with a laugh and a claim that this is typical government propaganda that is intended to fool the West.