Woman accuses Facebook of facilitating sex trafficking
A Texas-based woman has filed a lawsuit against Facebook, accusing the social media giant of facilitating sex trafficking. The woman, identified only as Jane Doe, has alleged that a human trafficker used the social network to get in touch with her and then forced her into sex trade when she was 16 (in 2012). Here are the details.
Imposter on Facebook
In the suit, filed on Monday, Doe alleged the trafficker friended her on Facebook by posing as someone knowing her real-life friends. Then, he got in touch with the plaintiff and consoled her when she had an argument with her mother. However, after picking her up, he beat, raped and forced her into sex trafficking, while also posting her pictures on now-shuttered website Backpage.com.
She claims Facebook executives were aware of the act
The woman claimed, in the lawsuit, that Facebook violated 2009 Texas Anti-Trafficking law and didn't do enough to verify the identity of the imposter. More worryingly, she alleged the social network was aware of the human trafficking acts on the platform but didn't do anything to warn or help those being lured. The suit seeks at least $1 million in damages.
Here's what Doe said in her complaint
"Facebook has continually been used to facilitate human trafficking by allowing sex traffickers an unrestricted platform to stalk, exploit, recruit, groom, recruit and extort children into the sex trade. Facebook is now the first point of contact between sex traffickers and these children," she alleged.
Others accused in the matter
Apart from Facebook, the founders of Backpage.com and two hotel owners have also been named as defendants in the lawsuit. Doe claimed that while Backpage assisted the pimp, the hotel owners turned a blind eye despite being aware of human trafficking at their locations. To recall, Backpage.com was shuttered in April, after its CEO pleaded guilty to the charges of human trafficking.
Facebook's response on the situation
In response to the allegations, Facebook said it reports all apparent cases of child sexual abuse to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Speaking to Engadget, the company spokesperson said, "Human trafficking is abhorrent and is not allowed on Facebook. We use technology to thwart this kind of abuse". It added people are encouraged to report such content for faster review, action.
Problems mounting over the social network
That said, the lawsuit brought by Doe adds another case to problems mounting over Facebook. After battling privacy-related issues since early 2018, Facebook suffered a massive security breach last week, affecting at least 50 million users on the platform. Not to mention, the founders of its dedicated photo-sharing service Instagram also resigned the same week.
