The role of adult service websites in addressing modern slavery

Adult Services Websites (ASWs) are an extensive and pervasive feature of the digital world across the globe that facilitate the advertising, negotiation and purchase of sexual services yet are also considered to be harbourers of sexual exploitation, modern slavery, and human trafficking (MSHT).1 ASWs are legal online platforms through which sex workers post profiles advertising sexual services to potential clients. The purchase and sale of consensual sexual services is legal in England and Wales. However, ASWs can (knowingly or unknowingly) facilitate modern slavery abuses, as victims of sexual exploitation are advertised alongside sex workers. Thus, the National Crime Agency (one of the key partners in this research) assess that the use of ASWs is almost certainly the most significant enabler of commercial sexual exploitation in the UK. This usually happens via profile adverts added for individuals who have no control over sex working and are subjected to some forms of coercion, force, or violence. The problems for law enforcement are related to both preventing platforms as attractive sites for exploiters as well as intelligence gathering, data scraping and investigating information which could lead to safeguarding or disrupting offenders. [Taken from Introduction]