TOPIC A: SOCIAL MEDIA AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING

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Whereas traffickers once relied on physical proximity to identify and manipulate vulnerable individuals, social media platforms now allow them to cast an unlimited net onto at-risk youth across the world. Digital platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat have become primary recruitment grounds for criminal networks, who pose as romantic partners or promising employers to lure vulnerable young people into exploitation. Once a victim is identified, encrypted messaging applications allow traffickers to coordinate operations across international borders with minimal risk of detection by law enforcement. The response from global technology companies has been overwhelmingly lackluster: some deploy artificial intelligence moderation tools, and others resist transparency requirements and legal liability altogether. Delegates in this committee must reckon with user privacy, free expression, and accessibility of digital platforms by youth, while finding ways to use the resources of the UNODC to strengthen the global opposition to human trafficking.  

 

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TOPIC B: THE DARK WEB AND CRYPTOCURRENCY IN THE TRAFFICKING OF ILLICIT GOODS

 

The rapid expansion of the dark web and decentralized cryptocurrencies has fundamentally transformed the way illicit goods are bought, sold, and financed across the globe. Online black markets operating on encrypted networks allow traffickers to conduct transactions with unprecedented anonymity, connecting buyers and sellers across continents without ever meeting in person. Despite notable law enforcement takedowns of platforms like Silk Road and AlphaBay, new marketplaces emerge almost immediately to fill the void, demonstrating the resilience of these networks in the face of conventional policing strategies. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime invites delegates to explore how the international community can provide topical and actionable solutions while navigating the deeply contested debate over privacy rights, state surveillance, and the limits of national jurisdiction in a borderless digital world.

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CHAIR: Kevin Keys

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