The independent anti-slavery commissioner has launched an investigation into so-called pimping websites amid concern at the level of exploitation of trafficked and vulnerable women on those platforms.

Eleanor Lyons will interview women who say they have been trafficked into sex work and advertised on adult services websites such as Vivastreet that allow users to browse images and videos of women selling sex in their local area.

The investigation follows on from a 2021 Scottish parliamentary study on commercial and sexual exploitation, which found that the ease and speed with which pimps and traffickers can now advertise their victims to potential customers had “turbocharged the sex-trafficking trade”.

“Adult service websites, where you can go online, type in your postcode and find hundreds of women for sale, are a hotbed for trafficking,” Lyons said. “We will do a full call for evidence on why these websites are so damaging. At a bare minimum, they should be far more heavily regulated.”

The sites have a duty to report evidence of trafficking and exploitation to the police, but campaign groups have warned that police often fail to spot victims of exploitation.

“There’s a really inconsistent approach by law enforcement around the country; there’s often a real nervousness when it comes to interacting with women in those environments. Many of these women have a natural distrust of law enforcement and authorities, and they have often been told to have that distrust by the people that are exploiting them,” Lyons said.

Signs of potential trafficking might be seeing the same women advertised multiple times at different locations, or when the same phone number is used for different women, suggesting that someone is controlling their work.

“I find it shocking that there are websites where women are openly being advertised and they are so unregulated. I think the lack of awareness about adult service websites is alarming, particularly when we know there’s a high correlation between women and girls who are sexually exploited and sexually trafficked who appear on these websites,” Lyons said. “The online world has massively facilitated the sexual exploitation of women.”

A Vivastreet spokesperson said: “Vivastreet is regulated by Ofcom under the Online Safety Act and takes safety extremely seriously. As required by law, we deploy a range of measures to detect, report and remove potentially exploitative content, including requiring all adult category advertisers to undergo age and ID verification. All our adverts are screened via a range of indicators informed by police advice, with suspicious content referred proactively to a central policing unit.”

Some women working in the sex industry argue that the transition to advertising their services online has allowed them to work more safely and independently, enabling them to screen clients before meeting them. But Lyons said the shift had also made it harder for organisations to support exploited women.

“Previously, charity workers would have been able to walk around areas where they knew that they may come across women and girls who were being sexually exploited on the street and reach out to them directly, to provide them with care and offer them support. The internet means that a lot of this has gone online and is now happening behind closed doors, in rented Airbnbs, in flats, in a much less visible form, so it’s easier for traffickers to move victims around.”

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An Ofcom spokesperson said: “The UK’s Online Safety Act requires sites and apps to protect people from illegal content, including facilitating the sexual exploitation of adults and human trafficking. We’re closely scrutinising companies’ compliance with their duties.”

A group of 59 cross-party MPs signed an amendment to the crime and policing bill earlier this year that would have made it a criminal offence to “enable or profit from the prostitution of another person, including by operating a website hosting adverts for prostitution”. The amendment was not put to a vote.

The independent anti-slavery commissioner’s team will conduct interviews in September and plan to publish their report shortly afterwards.

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