Using Modern Tools to Counter Human Trafficking

House Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation

2025-12-10

Loading video...

Source: Congress.gov

Summary

No summary available.

Participants

Transcript

The Subcommittee on Cybersecurity Information Technology and Government Innovation will now come to order.  And we welcome everyone.
Without objection, the chair may declare a recess at any time.
And I will now recognize myself for the purpose of making an opening statement.
Good afternoon.
Thank you all for being here today for this important hearing on using technology to counter human trafficking.
Human trafficking is not an abstract crime.
It's happening right now everywhere.
On our phones, in our teenagers' pockets, on websites we scroll past, on social media, without even thinking.  In the hotel rooms just off the interstates which run through all of our districts all across the country.  The average age a victim is first trafficked in the United States could be as low as 12 to 14 years old.
Let that sink in.
And you look at the Epstein victims, for example.  They were 14, many of them.
While we're sitting here, children are being bought and sold online like commodities.
These websites and communication platforms allow traffickers to operate in unimaginable ways.   But as we're here today, technology also provides us with a huge opportunity to fight this terrible crime with 21st century tools.  Artificial intelligence, data analytics, and digital forensics are no longer science fiction.  They're recovering victims in hours instead of months, identifying networks once hidden in plain sight and building courtroom-ready cases against predators who thought the internet made them untouchable.   But here's the hard truth.  We're still fighting this fight with one hand tied behind our backs.  Law enforcement is drowning in more than 20 million cyber tip line reports a year, while task forces are understaffed and underfunded and sometimes stuck using tools that were considered cutting edge 20 years ago.   Tech companies are generating mountains of raw data, requiring increased resources to sort through it all.  And well-meaning initiatives with the best intentions have, in some cases, driven trafficking deeper into the dark corners of the internet, making it harder for our investigators to follow.
According to South Carolina's corrupt Attorney General, Alan Wilson, in the state of South Carolina position he's held for 16 years, human trafficking is up over 400%
And he's proud of it.  It's obscene.  It's disgusting.  And Alan, if you're listening or watching this right now, I've got it coming for you.  We can do better.  We must do better.
And I'm hoping to learn from our witnesses today what is working, what is not, and most importantly, what Congress needs to do next.  Because many in our states, like Attorney General Alan Wilson, aren't doing anything right.   In fact, I just learned recently, Allen Wilson prosecuted zero pedophile cases last year in the state of South Carolina, zero.  Are our current laws helping or hurting?
Do we have the funding, the data sharing authorities, and the public-private partnerships we need to turn good technology   into rescued lives.
And how do we make sure innovation outpaces the criminals who adapt overnight?
Congress has both the responsibility and the ability to remove bureaucratic roadblocks, fund proven solutions, and write smarter laws which actually protect the vulnerable instead of just making us feel like we did something.
There is no more issue more urgent and there's no excuse for an action.  I look forward from the for the testimony today of our witnesses into working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to turn today's conversation into into tomorrow's results.
And I want to thank you.
I do want to request unanimous consent to enter some articles into the record.  The first is in Beaufort County in my district.
Men were charged with Beaufort County men   charged with child sex trafficking, coercion, child sexual abuse material distribution in November, just a month ago, 2025.
The next article is on Live 5 News, four indicted in my district in Charleston area, sex trafficking case and the search for more victims.  The next article also in my district, Hanahan husband and wife charged with trafficking and sexually exploiting a girl.   In Greenville County, South Carolina, two Greenville County men charged in human trafficking investigation involving minor, Sled says on WYFF.  In Rock Hill, South Carolina on WBTV, man accused of trafficking teen in Rock Hill.

Sign up for free to see the full transcript

Accounts help us prevent bots from abusing our site. Accounts are free and will allow you to access the full transcript.

Sign up