The role of adult service websites in addressing modern slavery Professor Teela Sanders and Dr Rachel Keighley School of Criminology, University of Leicester Executive Summary: • The landscape where modern slavery and sexual exploitation takes place has changed with the onset of digital technologies dominating the organisation of the commercial sex industry. • Adult Service Websites (ASWs), where most sexual services are advertised, negotiated and facilitated in the UK, are a space where exploiters can manipulate, entrap, coerce, and force individuals into selling sexual services. • The role of ASWs in facilitating offending behaviour is complicated and unregulated as national intelligence services try to understand routes to trafficking, the police work to identify victims and target offenders, and first responders deliver interventions to victims of sexual exploitation. • Researchers from the University of Leicester, in partnership with the National Crime Agency, National Police Chief's Council, and the Unseen investigated what role ASWs can play in preventing human trafficking and sexual exploitation in the UK, and their role in wider policies and laws on this issue. Methods: A mixed methods approach formed the framework of the research design. We chose this approach so the project could generate a unique body of evidence that reaches beyond existing data or government consultation: • An online questionnaire for providers and consumers using ASWs (n=142) • In-depth interviews with ASW staff (n=5) • Interviews with police (n=30 across 23 forces in England and Wales) and practitioners (n=13) involved with ASWs engagement and enforcement • Analysis of contemporary historical records and data from the last five years from the Unseen Helpline to identify knowledge on the role of ASWs in reported cases of modern slavery. Survivor involvement: Embedded into the project was ethical survivor involvement in peer research. Working alongside Unseen, the peers were involved through participation in the advisory group, instrument design, implementation, analysis, and the dissemination phase. We provided capacity building through a bespoke training package of Action Learning Sets. The regulation of ASWs: The interviews explored the current regulatory practices of ASWs and their responsibilities in preventing MSHT and how this could be improved with forthcoming UK legislation (UK Online Safety Bill): • Pop-up and easy to use reporting mechanisms. • Dedicated support pages and customer care/community teams. • ASW working groups with the NCA and police and partnerships with NGOs and sex worker support groups and operationalising feedback. • Human and AI moderation of content. • Multi-layered verification measures. • Proactive removal of illegal content to protect those selling sex. • Proactive reporting cases to the police and data sharing/complete compliance with investigations. ‘We are aware that ASWs remain a significant enabler within the sexual exploitation, modern slavery, and human trafficking threat, and we strongly believe that any business operating in this space has a responsibility to understand the risks involved, and to mitigate those risks to the best of its abilities.’ (ASW Operator) 4% 6% 2% 2% 3% 83% Coercion (Threats, blackmail, etc.) False promises or statements Familial Intimate partner/marriage proposition Job offer/advertisement Unknown Figure: The Recruitment Tactics used by potential exploiters to abuse and exploit individuals for sex on ASWs ‘I think if they’re going to exist, they have a responsibility in prevention. I won't make a comment on whether or not they exist, they exist, so I think therefore they have a responsibility in prevention. It probably fundamentally doesn’t work well for their business model to be a huge advocate for prevention. I think that’s the difficulty.’ (Intelligence Officer and Head of Operations, National Charity) https://doi.org/10.25392/leicester.data.23629005