Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody has called on Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to testify before the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking about the results of a “concerning Florida human trafficking survey.”

According to Ashley St. Clair on Twitter:

Florida’s Attorney General is calling for Mark Zuckerberg to speak to the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking regarding Meta platforms being used most frequently to “assist, facilitate or support human trafficking.”

According to their survey “146 of the 271 reported instances of social media platform use in human trafficking were attributable to Meta platforms (lnstagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger)… more than 53% of the reported instances involved.”

“According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s 2022 CyberTipline Reports by Electronic Service Providers, more than 27 million, or 85%, of the incidents reported were from Meta platforms.”

WOW

Florida’s Attorney General is calling for Mark Zuckerberg to speak to the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking regarding Meta platforms being used most frequently to “assist, facilitate or support human trafficking.”

According to their survey “146 of the 271 reported… pic.twitter.com/cCr3nGw0cv

— Ashley St. Clair (@stclairashley) July 10, 2023

The reason Meta has been singled out is because they account for the lion’s share of the offenses. Sick sexual predators have identified their apps as easy targets to sidestep any countermeasures. According to RedWave Press:

Attorney General Ashley Moody is calling for Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to appear before the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking and address the concerning results of a recent survey on human trafficking in Florida.

Moody, in a letter to Zuckerberg, highlighted the findings of the survey, which revealed that Meta platforms were responsible for 146 out of 271 reported instances of human trafficking facilitated through social media platforms.

Moody extended an invitation to Zuckerberg to testify and discuss Meta’s plans to combat the use of their platforms by human traffickers in furtherance of this abhorrent crime. The Meta umbrella includes prominent platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp.

The Statewide Council on Human Trafficking collaborated with law enforcement agencies to review cases where social media might have been exploited to facilitate human trafficking. The council’s next meeting is scheduled for October 2nd, and Moody has requested a response from Zuckerberg by September 5th.

Moody emphasized the urgency of addressing this issue, stating in a press release, “Rather than focusing on launching new products or engaging in futile preparations, Zuckerberg should prioritize enhancing the safety of Meta’s existing platforms and preventing the exploitation of vulnerable individuals for illicit activities like human trafficking.”

Moody pointed out that the findings of the statewide survey, along with other reports, make it evident that Meta platforms are the preferred social media applications among human traffickers seeking to prey on vulnerable individuals.

“Zuckerberg must immediately address this threat to public safety and testify before our council regarding Meta’s efforts to prevent the utilization of their platforms for aiding, facilitating, or supporting human trafficking,” Moody emphasized.

In collaboration with law enforcement agencies, Moody and the council conducted a comprehensive statewide study on documented instances since 2019 where social media was used to facilitate human trafficking, trafficking operations, or control victims. The survey was distributed to 80 law enforcement agencies, including all 67 sheriffs’ offices and police departments in major cities.

According to the 2022 Federal Human Trafficking Report, Facebook emerged as the primary platform employed for recruiting human trafficking victims between 2019 and 2022. Facebook and Instagram collectively constituted 60% of the top ten platforms identified in the study.