Hello, World!
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We will be looking at answering 6 questions in a "HoldUp" which is a creative brainstorming session.
[01] What are the elements of trafficking? What counts as trafficking? Who can be trafficked? Is there anything technically distinct about “online” trafficking or does it fall into the same category as other online crime?
[02] Someone has kidnapped your loved ones and to secure their release - you must make someone trust you and traffic them. Now imagine this is happening to you. You cannot tell the woman you are being forced to traffic her so you must think like a trafficker. You can say whatever you want to a person, but you need to get them to leave their home and come meet you. What would you say? What sort of emotions would you employ?
[03] What are the potential digital avenues and digital channels for communication that you might use to communicate with them? Using offline is prohibited or strongly discouraged so you must use online tools to communicate.
[04] What is the impact of these digital tools on trafficking activity? How do digital tools make the lives of traffickers easier? What do they do? How do they help?
[05] If you could use current digital technology to find, track, investigate, prosecute, murder, eradicate traffickers, how would you do it? Get crazy.
SOME BACKGROUND AND CONTEXTUAL INFORMATION
WHAT IS TRAFFICKING?
Trafficking is modern day slavery and a severe human rights violation as well as a complex transnational crime. The EU SOCTA (Serious Organised Crime Threat Assessment) highlights that the internet today is a key means for the recruitment as well as the advertising of the services of victims of trafficking.
In the EU alone in 2008-2010 more than 23,600 people were identified or presumed victims of trafficking, increasing by 18% in those 4 years. 80% of trafficked victims are women (68% women / 12% girls). The most widespread form of exploitation is sexual exploitation (62%), labour exploitation (25%) and other forms such as begging and criminal activities (14%). Globally there are estimates of 20 to 30 million slaves.
There is also a new form of trafficking known as “cyber-sex” trafficking where victims are confined and imprisoned forced to perform sexual acts for online customers satisfying sexual fantasies.
THE IMPACT INTERNET TECHNOLOGIES AND DIGITAL NETWORKS
Internet technologies and digital networks give users unprecedented abilities to connect and communicate instantaneously with individuals and large audiences over vast difference, thus enabling traffickers by increasing their ability to exploit a greater number of victims across geographic boundaries through some of the following methods:
- Social Networking sites like Twitter, Facebook and Myspace
- Classified Sites like Craigslist, Backpage who have adult or escort service sections
- Dating websites
- Online forums
- Social apps like Snapchat, Facetime or Skype
Cyber trafficking refers to the use of cyberspace for:
(1) the recruitment of victims
(2) the advertisement of victims services
(3) attracting clients. It’s a low cost, anonymous method which allows traffickers to commit their crimes at a reduced risk.