Human trafficking is a huge problem in several countries around the world. We’ve known this for decades, but for some reason authorities have found it difficult to get a hold of the situation, so what can be done? Non-governmental organizations, and of anti-trafficking advocates have been trying sway the tide for years, but the reason for this institutions and individuals being so useless is because holding seminars and creating TV ads doesn’t help at all’
It is similar to the situation of the kidnapped girls in Nigeria where thousands, including politicians and celebrities from all around the world began the Twitter with the slogan, #BringBackOurGirls. Let’s sit down and think about it for a moment; how is it possible for such a campaign to ensure the safe return of the girls? The whole situation didn’t make sense.
To combat human trafficking, we need real action and less politically motivated mumbo jumbo, and it appears Microsoft has found a way to bring this issue to a standstill.
According to the software giant, the technology industry should play an enormous role in the help of putting a stop to human trafficking in similar ways it is used to fight other crimes. Microsoft along with its partners are working on creating technology and tools to enable law enforcements around the world to better combat this escalating problem.
Microsoft plans to take advantage of “socio-technical research, privacy, interoperability, data sharing, cloud, and mobility to bear against trafficking.”
Human traffickers are using technology to make their job that much easier and efficient, so it makes sense for law enforcements to take advantage of technology to stop these individuals in their tracks. Such a task will not be easy to accomplish, but with hard work and determination, anything is possible.
Unfortunately, for the IT industry, law enforcements and organizations have proven time-and-time again that adopting a new form of technology can be a very slow process. This is one of the main reasons why human traffickers among other criminals are usually one or more steps ahead.
In the future, Microsoft promises to share more information what it and its partners are working on to help curb the trend of human trafficking around the world if even slightly.
