The Impact of the Internet on Trafficking in Persons

The Internet as well as other forms of technologies, have become new means of recruitment of victims for many forms of crime, because they are:

anonymous; rapid; easy to use; costless; criminals need not be at the scene of the crime; it can reach simultaneously many victims; and

It can have results in different places at the same time.

Use of new technologies by traffickers

Recruitment of victims; Exploitation of victims; Advertisement of victims' services;

Attract clients and

Avoid police interception of their communications

Components of trafficking in persons

Three components in trafficking in persons: 1.Use of specific means,

2. Specific action and

3. the purpose of exploitation

The main questions that need to be asked : (1)

1. What are the most common ways in which the Internet is used in the trafficking in persons process? 2. What use is made of the Internet, not only for recruitment purposes, but also to attract clients, advertising and communication purposes, as well as to report and investigate such crimes ? Important to investigate Internet-related trafficking in relation to: a) the use of Internet by traffickers to recruit the victims, as well as the profile of traffickers, sites/industries, clients and victims themselves; b) the use of the Internet to detect, report and disrupt the recruitment and exploitation of victims; and

(2)
c) the use of Internet to support intelligence-led investigations on trafficking in persons. 3. Which actions need to be taken by relevant sectors (be it the private sector, government agencies, non-governmental organizations) in order to bring more attention to the target groups (victims and possibly clients)?

4. How can potential victims be protected against all forms of trafficking when the Internet is used? In particular: a) How can the Internet be used to raise awareness and prevent trafficking in persons? b) What measures should be taken to ensure that the Internet is not used by traffickers (proactively: referring not only to monitoring and filtering
mechanisms but also to financial measures that prevent trafficking transactions both of traffickers and

would

(3)

of potential clients)? c) Could a global reporting mechanism for trafficking activities on the Internet be created?

Forms of trafficking in human beings that have been documented to date (1)
a) Sexual exploitation (exploitation of the prostitution of others) and its contiguous activities (activities related to exploitation even if they are not considered as trafficking per se, e.g. sexual tourism; if related to exploitation of prostitution); b) Child pornography ; c) Forced or bonded labour (for both adults and children); d) Domestic slavery/servitude; e) Mail order brides; f) Forced marriage; g) Trafficking for the purpose of removal of organs, tissues and cells (including any other elements of the human body e.g. blood, plasma, ova); h) Trafficking in babies or children for the purpose of illegal adoptions;

(2)

i) Trafficking in surrogate mothers (either by the form of trafficking in already pregnant women or of women who are impregnated with the purpose to use the babies for illegal adoptions or trafficking in organs); j) Trafficking for begging (especially of invalid persons, mainly children); k) Trafficking in (mainly) children, for the commission of crimes (such as stealing); l) Trafficking in children for their involvement in armed conflicts or terrorist activities.

Forms of trafficking related to the use of the Internet

Sexual exploitation;

Labour exploitation;
Domestic servitude;

Mail order brides (mainly for advertising);

Trafficking for illegal adoptions (including

babies and surrogate mothers); and

Trafficking for the purpose of the removal of organs

Factors that increase the use of technology by criminals

More generalised access to the Internet; Increased number of Internet users each year; Increased affordability of technology and services; Anonymity of users; Speed it is fast (leaving only digital traces); Ease of use; Criminals ability to work from home and operate in many countries reaching an indefinite number of victims; Difficulty in tracing (since criminals can operate in many countries and digital traces are difficult to track); Inability of victims to denounce the perpetrators because their identity might be unknown to them; The high profitability of crime in relation to the investment required; Lack of appropriate State policies and legislation and lack of uniform international legislation that creates problems not only in prosecution but in jurisdiction in general.

Links between Internet and recruitment of victims for trafficking and advertisement of their services :

Victims are deceived by fake advertisements (baby sitting; modelling, etc.) or through chat-rooms and social networks and then may be forced to produce pornographic material; Victims recruited in traditional ways may be forced to contact clients on-line contributing to their own further victimisation; Trafficked victims may be traded or their services advertised to clients via the Internet.

Attempted typology of traffickers using Internet to recruit victims

Distinction of traffickers according to: The method of recruiting their victims; Whether they choose to transfer their victims abroad or not for exploitation; How they use the Internet and their involvement in the creation of sites; Their personal involvement in the exploitation of the victims (e.g. exploitation for personal use and not necessarily for economic profit); Their level of association with transnational/national organized criminal networks.

Key role players in the trafficking process:

Traffickers Victims Clients Service providers and Other stakeholders that facilitate the trafficking process

through the Internet (such as financial institutions that allow

payment by credit cards and also the press and/or the media that might host deceptive advertisements)

Use of the Internet in the trafficking process

Internet can be used as means for the commission of any form of trafficking in persons but also as means to: a) report the crime; b) detect criminals; c) assist intelligence led investigations; d) prosecute; e) disrupt criminal activities; and f) facilitate international cooperation

Objectives in fighting human trafficking

Not only to gather evidence and bring suspects to justice, but also:

to end the exploitation; to protect and support victims and witnesses; to confiscate the financial profits of the crime and

to prevent re-occurrence.

Main difficulties in prosecuting Internet related cases of trafficking

1. Traffickers may be located anywhere in the world 2. Difficulty in the timely location of perpetrators and preservation of digital evidence 3. No international binding legislation for Internet or Internet related crimes and the retention of data by ISPs

Reporting of Internet related cases of trafficking:

Could assist all levels of law enforcement by providing one streamlined reporting tool that would enhance information sharing and collaborative efforts to combat trafficking in persons.

Detection of crimes:

Two elements are of importance to the investigation of such cases: a)The conservation of data by the Internet Service Providers (ISPs); and b) The good detection of files.

Questions that can be answered by the digital evidence:

a) Where were the perpetrators and the victims during the recruitment (same or different country)? b) When and with whom have the perpetrators have communicated? c) Did the perpetrators have the intention of committing the crime?

Disruption of trafficking activities

An international financial coalition is crucial to stop the on-line transactions related to human trafficking

The creation of a global database could intend to: (1)

1. Facilitate rapid identification of, and contact between:

a) institutions and organisations active in the anti-trafficking

sector in different countries (NGOs, local authorities, government bodies, universities, etc.); and b) working on different forms of trafficking (sexual exploitation, forced labour, organ trafficking, illegal international adoptions,

mail-order brides, etc.);

(2)

2. It could Address different target groups (children, men, women, trans-gender people, communities, social and health workers, educators, teachers, law enforcement officers, judicial personnel, etc.); 3. Support different types of action (detection of cases; reporting; disruption of trafficking activities and assistance directly aimed at trafficked persons);

(3)

4.Facilitate the exchange of up-to-date information on organisations, projects, activities and services concerned with trafficking; and of professionals in this field who need to contact their counterparts in other countries; and 5. Encourage networking and co-operation between organisations working on trafficking.

Identified recommended actions

a) Assessing the use of new information and communication technologies by traffickers for the recruitment of victims and advertisement of their services via the Internet; b) Developing technologies to detect, report and disrupt the recruitment and exploitation of victims via the Internet; including tracking and blocking credit card payments for Internet-related human trafficking transactions;

c) Supporting intelligence-led investigations in the use of new technologies and trafficking in persons.

Actions for the Government: (1)

a) Harmonisation of Internet legislation aiming at the retention of data by Internet Service Providers, including the possibility of withdrawal of any prohibition related to data protection for any action related to human trafficking investigations, while ensuring the protection of bona fide users; b) Compliance of national provisions on trafficking in persons with the Trafficking in Persons Protocol;

(2)
c) Standard setting (preferably harmonised at the international level) for various types of web sites and services offered through the Internet, e.g. employment or marriage agency sites;
d) Institutionalise capacity development measures to increase the capacity of law enforcement authorities to investigate Internet-related trafficking cases; e) Ensure regular monitoring and investigation through innovative and specialised investigative methods and techniques by law enforcement authorities, combined with preventive action to alert potential victims and clients;

(3)

f) Conduct regular analysis of reported cases to help create profiling systems for sites and tools used to recruit victims via the Internet, by: Gathering all information on Internet-related cases of human trafficking using existing systems (such as Interpol, Europol, Eurojust) to which only authorised persons would have access; Gathering tactical intelligence about the methods of recruitment; Refining methods for analysing patterns and sharing information on trafficking in persons cases carried out through the use of the Internet; Developing specific indicators to detect different forms of trafficking in persons through the Internet.

Actions for Research institutions:

Research on the impact of new technologies on human trafficking on an national and international level, to assess to what extent the Internet has contributed to the recruitment of victims of trafficking and to the continuation of their victimisation (e.g. use of sites by potential clients).

Actions for International organisations: (1)

a) Support capacity development measures to increase the capacity of law enforcement authorities to investigate Internet-related trafficking cases; b) Support international measures to improve the reporting, detection and disruption of human trafficking activities using information and communication technologies; c) Support the analysis of reported cases to help create profiling systems for sites and tools used to recruit victims via the Internet. This is to assist in the development of prevention initiatives and to recognize characteristics of offenders and potential victims (taking into account the risks in creating stereotypes);

(2)

d) Support the expansion of clearing house mechanisms for streamlined on-line reporting on trafficking in persons via the Internet by: - Enhancing cooperation among specialized units dealing with recruitment of victims of trafficking via the Internet; - Building upon mechanisms such as the CyberTipline and other on-line hotlines to include reporting on trafficking in persons.

Actions for the Private sector:

a) Support the development of tools to prevent and detect trafficking in persons via the Internet b) Cooperate with Governments to ensure that the adoption of policies to help prevent and combat trafficking in persons via the Internet. c) Facilitate investigation and prosecution efforts by helping restore data to and taking action to block online advertisements proven to be related to exploitative practices (for Internet Service Providers). c) Promote awareness on the safe use of the Internet for both potential victims and clients.

Actions for the Financial (Private/public) sector:

a) Improve international cooperation among financial institutions together with Internet Service Providers to help track and block credit card payments for Internet-related human trafficking transactions.
b) Share information on the use and typologies of financial transactions for human trafficking activities.

Actions for the Civil society

a) Provide information and other services to victims, whilst building on the knowledge and information gathered by law enforcement, intelligence units and trafficking victims themselves (e.g. Counselling of Internet trafficking victims in order to avoid re-victimisation); and b) Promote awareness on the safe use of the Internet for both

potential victims and clients.-

Thank you!