Anti-trafficking Heroes: Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore, and Thorn
If you do an online search for organizations that fight human trafficking, you’ll find an array of different organizations fulfilling a number of important roles. Some go out and physically rescue trafficking victims. Others serve the needs of survivors by providing counseling, education, or job training. Still others exist to spread awareness of human trafficking to a public that is still largely unaware of the magnitude of the problem. One organization, known as Thorn, has a unique place in the fight against trafficking and against the online abuse of children.
Thorn is the brainchild of actors Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore. In 2009, they watched a special, aired by Dateline, about the sex trafficking of Cambodian children. After discovering that the problem didn’t just exist overseas but was a problem in the United States as well, they were moved to found the DNA Foundation. The name of the organization was later changed to Thorn, and their mission became to “build technology to defend children from sexual abuse.” Their efforts seem to be working. According to Ashton Kutcher, they have helped 6000 children and identified 2000 traffickers so far (1).
The role that Thorn occupies in the battle against trafficking and abuse stems from the realization of a major problem: technology is allowing the abuse of children to become easier and more widespread. In fact, the internet has allowed a tremendous increase in the availability of “child sexual abuse material (CSAM).” The dissemination of that material far beyond its original audience only adds to the trauma the children endure. And, with 67% of trafficked children now advertised online, there is unfortunately no shortage of material (2).
As part of their research, Kutcher and Moore’s organization did a survey of trafficking survivors. They found that of those who “entered the life” in 2014, 75% were advertised online, compared to 39% in 2004. Thorn also found the age of these victims to be both startling and disturbing. In many cases, particularly cases where the trafficker actually communicates with the buyer online, the age of the victim was typically under 14, with 1 in 6 under 12 (3).
Seeking solutions to these problems, Thorn, with the help of celebrity founders and board members Kutcher and Moore, has forged alliances with some of the World’s largest tech companies, allowing them to put experts in technology to work protecting children at risk (4). According to their website, www.wearethorn.org
We refuse to live in a world where the technology exists to help kids but simply isn’t being used. We build powerful products, lead new programs, maintain essential resources, and develop awareness campaigns to attack the issue from all sides. We want tech companies, law enforcement, and NGOs to leverage everything we do.
The principles that empower these goals are to “accelerate victim identification,” “deter abusers,” and “disrupt platforms” (5).
The experts at Thorn have met their goals by developing a number of tools to aid law enforcement, help abuse victims, and identify perpetrators. For example, Spotlight is software that allows law enforcement to use the “digital footprints” generated by traffickers to find both the victims and the traffickers, and the data generated actually helps strengthen the cases against the traffickers. Another tool developed by Thorn, Project Vic, creates a “central repository of child sexual abuse images.” With this tool, investigators are able to better analyze content, speeding up the process of building cases against traffickers and rescuing victims (6).
Thorn has also developed a tool that can be used by actual or potential victims. BEFREE is a text code that a child can send if making a phone call will put them in danger. Once again, from the Thorn website:
Kids in danger might not be able to make a call, but they might be able to text. BEFREE is a text shortcode for the National Human Trafficking Hotline number developed by Thorn in partnership with the Polaris, Twilio and the Salesforce Foundation. BEFREE aims to give kids a life-line on their phones and create an outlet for those who might see suspicious behavior.
In addition to these indispensable tools, Thorn offers a number of other services to both law enforcement and victims:
•The Thorn Sound Practices Guide For Business gives businesses access to resources that allow them to “identify, remove, report, and prevent child sexual abuse materials on their platforms” (7).
•An Online Deterrence Program targets those who search for CSAM. The goal is to prevent anonymity and encourage buyers to seek help.
•A hash sharing tool speeds up the removal of abusive images from the internet.
At this point, you may be thinking that you have little to offer an organization which operates largely in the technical sphere. However, there are things you can do to help:
1. Donate, donate, donate! Organizations like Thorn cannot function without your generosity.
2. Thorn needs volunteers for non-technical projects.
3. If you are a techie, you can apply for a job or volunteer for technical projects.
4. If you have a business or work for an NGO, you can partner with them.
5. If you are in law enforcement, you can look into how their tools might help your department.
M
Sources:
(1) Haskell, Bob. “How Ashton Kutcher Went From That 70s Show To Fighting The Sexual Exploitation Of Children.” wmagazine.com, 24 May, 2017.
(2) www.wearethorn.com
(3) www.wearethorn.com
(4) Gellar, Lindsay. “The Question That Led Ashton Kutcher To Co-Found A Nonprofit That Fights Child Sexual Exploitation.” aplus.com, 31 May, 2017.
(5) www.wearethorn.com
(6) Godlewski, Linda. “What Is Thorn Spotlight? Ashton Kutcher-Owned Software Aims To Help End Human Trafficking.” International Business Times, 15 Feb, 2017.
(7) www.wearethorn.com