Media heavily influences our lives in almost all aspects, especially with the eruption of so many different forms of media. In modern society we have been exposed to new media forms through internet and social media, television and movies...the list goes on. These forms of media have changed the way our society operates and in many ways. By far the most impactful change of media in today’s society has been the integration of internet in our daily lives. We use the internet daily to check social media sites, keep in contact with friends, keep up with daily news or information about the world; we also find things online that we don’t wish to find or wish to imagine. The internet has allowed for many advancements to be made and has seen beneficial outcomes, but with the good comes the bad. Modern media’s ease of access and unregulated nature has allowed for societal issues to flourish: one of which is sex trafficking. In our society we have seen a major change in the realm of sex trafficking; Not only has supply and demand erupted in the last decade, but the ease of access over the internet has acted as a “safe place” for the industry to thrive. The uncontrolled environment of internet interactions has become a harbor for online predators and a dangerous place for unknowing potential victims. 

Because of the open, free nature of the internet it’s difficult to detect predators, malicious activity, and harmful websites. The dangerous outcome of this online freedom has served as a major turning point for sex trafficking to find an easier route to targeting victims and tricking young, impressionable children into trusting traffickers.  

Sex traffickers have not gone away with time and it may never, so as the world around us evolves, so do their methods of roping in victims. With the eruption of internet in the past decade and open net policies, they have used the resource to their advantage to locate their victims and hide behind the screen to build the relationship that tricks young, naive girls into believing the stranger they’ve encountered is not dangerous. The main targets of sex trafficking tend to be young girls in poverty or abusive homes who are in poor economic and emotional states. But through modern conveniences, such as social networking websites and internet connections, the pimps are able to reach different populations. Prior to the internet becoming a major role in our society, targets of sex trafficking were found on the streets or lured in by traffickers through face to face interaction. With internet, it cut out the middle step; traffickers can directly build relationships with victims of all backgrounds without face to face interactions and “entice, torture, and bribe” young girls.  

Sex trafficking is a major issue in all areas of the world. Most people don’t realize how prevalent cases of sex trafficking are because they assume it only happens in less developed countries or lower income areas. But the truth of the matter is it can happen to anyone. And the internet has only exponentialized it’s growth in all areas of the world. In developed countries, internet is quickly becoming a major part of our modern society and has been a source of many positive things; but in no means does internet avoid any negative side effects. Because it is such a new aspect in society we do not understand how to control or prevent these negative things from happening. Human trafficking continues to be flourishing in our modern society and internet only serves as an accessible outlet for its growth. Sex trafficking has earned the title “Modern Day Slavery”, and rightly so. Homeland Security defines human trafficking as “modern-day slavery involving the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act” (What is Human). Human trafficking is a major issue among young girls and women because of the emotional manipulation and promise from traffickers. They coerce their victims with a promise of a better life and financial solace. In today’s internet driven society, we allow easy access to the buying and selling of women and children in the human trafficking industries. An already “underground” trade, the uncontrolled environment of the internet allows for ease of access of supply and demand in the industry. 

With internet, comes the new forms of media reaching people; the media plays an important role in this issue of sex trafficking. Internet media has opened a whole new window for advertisements to reach a broader spectrum of consumers, therefore making it easier for those seeking out trafficking victims to find supply outlets. The industry is thriving now more than ever because “where demand exists, supply follows” (Briefing). Even more frightening consumers who have partaken in exploitation of these victims were aware of the conditions of the situation: they were aware that these women and young girls are being used as sex slaves. The advertisements, being public, did not directly state the offer so it isn’t always easy to detect this activity. But when it can be detected, investigators have access to who interacts with these public ads and can easily create fake advertisements that mimic those of traffickers to rope in suspects and help locate victims. So, the online advertisements can be used as a tool for secretly infiltrating traffickers “rings”, but there is a greater chance in preventing these ads all together with control over our “open-net” system. But do these advertisements influence the growth of human trafficking as well as serve as a possible solution to stopping online human trafficking?

Of course, not all traffickers can be stopped simply by baiting with advertisements and through investigation of such sites. There is too much online activity to detect every false advertisement or malicious website. Private and direct messages are also a way for traffickers can’t be traced because of personal privacy rights, so those interacts can go unnoticed (Fortson).

Internet has a history of sexual exploitation in the time that it’s been around, so it is no surprise that the internet harbored activity that promotes sex trafficking. In 1995, an international sex tourism website was discovered online by the US Department of State and the US Department of Justice: Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and they reported that “technology including websites, is increasingly facilitating child sex tourism” (Briefing). So, internet has proven itself as a problematic space for exploitation that we have yet to figure out how to control. Internet is an easy way for traffickers to upload photos and advertisements with little risk of getting caught and with the abundance of activity daily over the internet the chances of their activity being caught or tracked is a slim chance. The free and open realm of internet interaction also allows for groups to form online with the freedom to discuss illegal desires or demands of similar interests; these sites can make it easy for traffickers to find “customers” and use the trafficked victims to meet their desires. The internet opens access to many different groups that can meet demand from all areas around the world. By having that ease of access to the target consumers, it makes it even more dangerous for these victims because it increases demand. 

There is an ongoing debate on the line between protecting freedom of expression online and controlling internet conduct: as U.S. citizens we support the idea of free expression in all forms, but it is naive to assume all expression is wholesome and harmless. But because of the nation’s strong efforts to protect this freedom, U.S. courts continue to support an “open-net” policy (Federal Internet Law), which makes it very difficult to control sexual exploitation of children online. In 1996 Congress passed The Communications Decency Act in attempt to make the internet a safer place for children by “criminalizing the ‘knowing’ transmission of ‘obscene or indecent’ messages to any individual under 18 years of age (Briefing). But, because of our free expression beliefs in society, the supreme court overturned the portion of the act regarding consent because it was believed to be a blanket statement restricting speech offending the first amendment.  Sex trafficking has been amplified by the uncontrolled boundaries and unclear laws surrounding internet conduct. There are several laws written pertaining to conduct on the internet, but “unlike the flow of information on the internet, domestic laws, and law enforcement restricted by national borders”, sex trafficking online cannot be control by laws with borders. There is no global law that directly criminalizes exploitation of victims of sex trafficking, whether it be recruitment, advertisement, or selling; the lines are blurred on the boundaries of what activity is illegal and that gray area of internet interaction allows traffickers to have a “safety net”. 

 The easy access to digital technology such as cameras and phones has made it so traffickers can take pictures of victims to post online for advertisements. In personal encounters of many victims, they recall the traffickers immediately after capturing them telling them to remove their clothing to take pictures to post online for advertisements to find their first “customers”. Craigslist, despite controls and security changes on the website, they still inhibit the growth of the sex trafficking industry. Traffickers can easily list false advertisements for the sale of victims and services. Craigslist is one of many websites that harbor sex trafficking, but it is a major necessity for the industry to thrive: “In some instances, tourists can conveniently pay for their fantasies through secured transactions online, [making it] easier than ever to arrange with pimps” (Briefing). These types of websites making it easy to protect identity of traffickers and the identity of the consumer: transactions can be private and protected and can operate under false identities with ease. Not only does is protect the identity of consumers, but it expands the population in which these demands can be reached because of the ease of access of information and contact over the internet. These websites are harmful to victims of sex trafficking by increasing demand and expediting consumers’ access to supply.

Internet advertisements is a common way for traffickers to trick people into falling victim to sex trafficking. The most dangerous situations to be aware of in cases of sex traffickers are traveling to different countries from ads in the media or through media interaction. Sadly, in many cases of sex trafficking women will fall for false newspaper advertisements and, more commonly now, online advertisements. Because advertisements can be purchased and there is no follow up required, they can post false advertisements to grasp the attention of the type of victim desired. For example, traffickers often pose as recruiters posting advertisements for young, petite models; being eager to begin their modeling their careers they jump at the opportunity to have a run at a successful career. Once the traffickers have this way to ensure direct contact, they have their victim away their usual surroundings and can force them to do whatever the demand desires. This is expedited over the internet. Rather than direct advertisements, traffickers make promises to young teens that are coming from broken or poor backgrounds: in the past, they had to convince victims in a short amount of time, typically runaways, that they were able to trust them and that they could promise them a better life. But, with internet giving just about every individual access to social networking sites, traffickers can take their time building these “trusting” relationships with victims without the immediate, direct interaction.  In one case of a young teenage girl named Bianca, she had posted on social media about a fight she’d had with her mother and in the heat of the fight wrote how much she hated her mom and wanted to move out without expecting the repercussions: she was lured in by a sex trafficker promising her a loving relationship with a man she had never met. The post signified to the trafficker that he could step in during a confusing time, so he targeted her. In this way traffickers can find the vulnerable young teens in the area and approach them in ways that appeal to the victim (DrPhilShow). Social media is one of the easiest ways for traffickers to target their victims. They private nature of messaging via internet protects them for exposure to public interaction after building that “trusting” relationship with the targeted victim. They can access public information about their targeted victims and play to the needs of each victim and use any of that information to manipulate the relationship they form online. The more public and vulnerable young girls are online the easier it is for the trafficker to convince the victim that they can help them reach their needs: if they express their feelings as being “misunderstood”, as do many angsty-teens, they can say something as simple as “I understand” and confuse the naive mind of the victim and make them feel as though they’re a friend rather than a stranger. But, “traffickers hide behind technology that enables their conduct” by using social media sites where they can hide their identity and run minimal risk of prosecution (Briefing).

Just because less developed countries may not have the advancements and interaction over the internet doesn’t mean they’re any less affected by the major influence internet has on the trade. Victims of sex trafficking who have already been placed in the “ring” are only put in more dangerous situations and higher in demand. Traffickers can easily post pictures of victims online using digital technology, upload them to websites, run advertisements, or file share with online groups. These pictures can be reached anywhere around the world with access to the internet; so, it globalizes the issue that would likely have been remotely local. 

In order to put an end to the widespread sale and consumption of sex trafficking victims there has to be a global change. Without international participation to put an end to internet trafficking, a single country’s failure to adhere to principles supported by other countries can create a safe haven for harmful activity that can cause a rise in sex trafficking practices via the web. Predators would be held liable for their actions via the internet and rather than passed legislation that’s “consent-based” to protect victims, we can use the conduct of the predator to defend and protect sex trafficking victims: “As with the UN protocol, an international internet-anti-trafficking provision should further note that “consent” of a victim of exploitation is meaningless, and therefore could not be used as a defense to the crime of internet facilitated trafficking in women and children”(Briefing).

 If we recognize the difference between content and conduct over the internet we can attempt to control the criminal activity that goes on and collaboratively investigate online activity promoting sexual exploitation of sex trafficking victims. Content is simply the images or publications on the internet, while content refers to the actual actions of individuals. So, by using the conduct rather than content can clarify the way we can go about investigating harmful activity via the internet as well as being able to place blame on the individual producing the false advertisements, luring in victims, and running trafficking rings; as well as tracking consumers. 
