How do traffickers lure their victims?

For many of us, the idea that traffickers could be operating anywhere is frightening. You might feel like there is a risk of a trafficker lurking around every corner.

Understanding how traffickers lure their victims* can both alleviate fears and empower us toward more effective advocacy as we learn what to look for. Here are the recruitment methods used by human traffickers.

Regardless of the type of trafficking or where it occurs, one thing is consistently the same: human traffickers prey on the vulnerable. 

“Controllers are skilled at using victims’ unique vulnerabilities, and often target their recruitment efforts at high-risk populations,” Polaris states. “For example, youth with a history of familial abuse or neglect are at high risk for running away from home, and therefore, more likely to be approached by a pimp.”

Some common vulnerabilities that traffickers look for and exploit include:

• Poverty
• Homelessness
• Migrant status
• Familial instability
• Mental health challenges
• Disability
• Substance use
• Lack of education
• Social minority
• Isolation
• History of abuse 

Each of these vulnerabilities gives traffickers a doorway into a man, woman, or child’s life. This is not an exhaustive list; any weakness or disadvantage can potentially be exploited.

The most common vulnerability that traffickers exploit globally is poverty. According to the UNODC’s Global Report on Trafficking in Persons, poverty is the primary risk factor for just over 50% of people who are trafficked.

The common cultural narrative around trafficking has often included abduction or physical violence from shadowy strangers. But sadly, the majority of people who survive human trafficking know the person who trafficks them.

As Polaris explains it, “People in sex trafficking situations almost always know and even trust or love their traffickers. Traffickers target vulnerable people who have needs that the traffickers can fill.”

The needs might be emotional: romantic connection, familial love, belonging, acceptance. The needs also might be practical: work, food, shelter. Traffickers promise to meet those needs in order to exert control and create dependence.

One of the most common ways this happens is through what is called “romeo” or “loverboy” pimping. This refers to a situation in which a man will target a woman or boy, usually one who is younger than him, and shower them with love and attention. Once they are drawn in and attached emotionally, he will pressure them to have sex with clients while he collects the money. 

“Reportedly, traffickers use the promise of marriage or a romantic relationship to lure young women away from their homes and support networks, making them less likely to attempt escape once forced into labor trafficking or sex trafficking,” says the 2023 Trafficking in Persons report.

Increasingly, the early stages of this model of trafficking have moved online. A trafficker might use dating apps or social media to initiate a relationship through compliments. Usually these relationships escalate quickly in intensity, but sometimes the build into exploitation might be slower — so slow it’s hard to notice until the control is nearly absolute.

Familial trafficking occurs most often between an older and a younger family member, with the age hierarchy creating a power imbalance that can easily be exploited. Broken family systems are fertile ground for both sex and labor trafficking. Whether it’s a parent, grandparent, aunt, or uncle, it’s hard for a child to say no to an older family member who demands that they work.

The likelihood of familial trafficking is increased in times of displacement, economic hardship, and conflict.

According to experts at ECPAT, “Children, amidst these challenging times, face significant shifts in the socio-economic roles they may be expected to play in times of hardship, often being pushed to contribute to family income at a tender age.”

One of the most common ways that traffickers prey on the vulnerable is through false job promises. Recruiters paint a picture of lavish pay doing easy work, creating an offer that seems impossible to turn down for someone living in poverty. This ensnarement works particularly well on migrants who are economically unstable.

“Third-party recruiters – often operating unlawfully or semi-lawfully – may be the only source of employment information available to migrants,” the International Labour Organization explains. “This makes it easy for them to lie about the nature of jobs and conditions of work.”

Unfortunately, often traffickers are exploiting someone’s most compassionate instincts, such as a deep desire to provide for their family. A sense of duty often compels someone to ignore red flags and accept an offer.

In fact, in 39% of 2023 cases worked by The Exodus Road, false job promises were one of the primary methods of recruitment. Often, promises of jobs in hospitality or food service dissolve quickly into being forced to service customers in brothels, as was the case for Zansi in India. 

In labor trafficking cases, the promise of an agricultural position might hold a kernel of truth. But when an employee arrives, their working conditions are deplorable, and their pay might be little to non-existent.

Increasingly, traffickers don’t even have to find someone face-to-face in order to recruit them. They just have to use social media.

According to the 2023 TIP Report, “Traffickers may also present themselves as recruiters or modeling scouts on dating platforms and promise unsuspecting individuals lucrative career offers. Anonymity or use of false information included in online profiles allows traffickers to misrepresent themselves and deceive targeted individuals.”

The shift towards digital recruitment accelerated rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving a legacy of danger for the vulnerable. Teenagers can be particularly at-risk of recruitment through these channels, which is why The Exodus Road has developed the Influenced educational program to protect vulnerable youth online.

Once they’ve follow false hope, even after they find out that a job was false, trafficking survivors are often not able to leave. 

“Wages may be withheld in order to cover housing or tools and equipment. This creates a situation where the worker becomes dependent on the employer for food and shelter,” the ILO explains.

Debt bondage is another common form of coercion, as a trafficker might saddle a victim with fraudulent fees and demand payment before they can be released. An abuser also might confiscate vital documents such as a driver’s license or passport.

Other forms of entrapment are even more insidious. Psychological manipulation can include overt threats to a survivor and their family. They can also include more covert methods, such as convincing a survivor that they only have value through their relationship with the trafficker, eroding their sense of worth and their grasp on reality. Blackmailing and shaming might also be used to keep someone under a trafficker’s control.

You can read more about how traffickers control survivors here.

Understanding how traffickers operate helps us know what to look for. But how can we stop traffickers if they’re people in our communities who everyone knows and trusts?

Being a friend to those who are most likely to be victims of trafficking is the ultimate way to prevent human trafficking from happening. As a reminder, people who are most at risk include migrants, foster kids, LGBTQ+ youth, people in poverty, anyone with mental illness or substance use issues, and those who are religious or cultural minorities. Your genuine solidarity with and care for people in these communities is a protective factor that reduces vulnerability.

Supporting trustworthy human trafficking nonprofits with a proven track record is a great way to be active in the fight. However, you might also consider supporting organizations that work in community development, poverty alleviation, or mental health support. This complex and multi-faceted issue requires creative compassion to combat. Volunteering at your local shelter for unhoused women and children is fighting human trafficking, even if you don’t realize it!

If someone comes to you and confides a story of exploitation, let them know that you believe them immediately and wholeheartedly. Even if their story of abuse involves someone who you know and respect, take it seriously. False reports of sexual assault account for an estimated 2% of reported harm. Although no reliable numbers exist for trafficking reports, we do know that it’s a vastly under-reported crime — not over. 

You have every reason to believe survivors. In doing so, you create a safety net in the most dangerous experiences of their lives. Their exploitation can be ended. All it takes is one person believing them and walking alongside them to seek help.

Now that you know what to look for, it’s time to spread the word. Helping others to better understand how traffickers lure their victims will spread your community’s ability to protect those who need it. You can do that through sharing TraffickWatch in your digital spaces. You can also consider bringing Influenced to parents and teenagers in your community. 

*For the purposes of this article, we use “victim” as a legal term to refer to those who are victims of human trafficking crime. Our preferred way to refer to people who have been trafficked is survivor. For more on the words we choose to use, read How do we talk about human trafficking?