Over the last year, Polaris examined data from the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline to determine the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on human trafficking in the United States. An examination of the number of daily situations of sex trafficking reported to the Trafficking Hotline indicates a possible shift in where likely sex trafficking involving online sexual exploitation was happening during the pandemic. This in turn highlights how traffickers quickly adapt to changing contexts and the challenges and opportunities this poses to those trying to reduce and prevent sex trafficking.
