Who does human trafficking affect
Human traffickers prey on individuals who may be in challenging situations. This could be someone who is not in contact with their family, struggling with their identity, a Survivor of abuse, or someone in desperate need of work or money. Whatever the reason, victims are often unaware that they're even being groomed as traffickers are often expert manipulators.
Need help?
If you or someone you know is a victim or Survivor of sex or labour trafficking, get help now.
Hear from Survivors about risk factors
While trafficking can happen to anyone, there can be factors that traffickers look for when targeting their victims. The following video features real testimonies from Survivors of sex trafficking, highlighting some of the potential risk factors from their lived experiences.
If you have difficulties playing video, please let us know using the feedback tool at the bottom of this page.
Transcript
The following video contains topics that may be distressing to some audiences including sexual exploitation, drug use, and violence. Viewer discretion is advised.
The following video contains testimonies from Survivors of sex trafficking and their family members.
They've shared their experiences to help Canadians understand the problem of human trafficking in this country.
Who's at risk of sex trafficking?
Brenda
This can happen to anyone, like, this happens to rich people, this happens to poor people. It happens to educated family members, to non-educated. It's not prejudiced to anybody or any place or anything.
Augusta
He knew that I wanted to, like, look after my family.
He knew that I wanted to be self-sufficient, and that I wanted to pay for school. That I had all of these, like, aspirations of being financially stable, because that's really, really hard to do.
I didn't really think of it in a sense of like, oh, my god, he sees the fact that I'm vulnerable, he sees this as an in. It didn't cross my mind once.
Mallory
I thought I was just a sex worker who met the wrong guy, who got myself in a shitty situation, who met some really crappy people, and I was just lucky to get out of it.
I was a perfect target. Perfect target. I had … no family that was regularly checking up on me at that point in my life. I could disappear and nobody would notice. It was... … probably one of the easier targets for him. I was insecure, I was uneducated. I didn't really have any skills. And he fed into that. He was-- he is a predator, and I was the perfect prey for him. That was hard for me to accept, that he knew what he was doing. Like, it's easier for me to think that, like, I set this up so easily for him. Like-- like this was-- was my doing, and that's what he-- he groomed me to walk out thinking, is that it was still my fault and... … I still struggle with it some days.
Charlie
I was trafficked between the ages of eight and around 14, 15.
From ages zero to six, I was in about four different homes. And then from six to 11 is when I was with my granny. My grandparents divorced. Like, as the different family members were coming in and out of my life, that's when the trafficking, you know, started. And my granny had no idea.
Raine
I would run away from the group homes because it was literally, like, a bed and,
like, your food, but there was belonging, there was no connection to the workers. There was like-- it was missing heart, like, it was just a job to some people. And so I ran to the streets because it gave me a sense of belonging, it gave me a sense of power. I was 12, so 12-- so from 12 to 16 I was in Child and Family Services and...... slept on the streets, I was homeless. My drug of choice was methamphetamines. My substance use wasn't, like, out of control addiction at that point. I think it was more just coping with the pain. But in order to be homeless and on the streets, you know, you turn to drugs and alcohol to, like, support-- to help deal with that trauma.
While sex trafficking can happen to anyone, traffickers tend to unfairly target some people with unmet needs who have faced systemic injustice.
If you or someone you know may be a victim or Survivor of sex trafficking, call the Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-833-900-1010
His Majesty the King in Right of Canada, as represented by the Ministers of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, 2025.
PS18-96/1-2025E-MP4
ISBN 978-0-660-75677-6
Public Safety Canada
Securite publique Canada
Canada
Commonly targeted groups
While people of all ages and genders can be targeted by human trafficking, most police-reported incidents in Canada, have involved young women and girls.
In addition, traffickers can target people who are:
- Young
- Female
- Have suffered abuse and violence
- Indigenous or from racialized communities
- LGBTQ2+
- Living with disabilities
- Migrants or new immigrants
- Struggling with money
- In foster care
- Unaware of their rights
- Working in remote areas
- Isolated from social supports
- Struggling with the dominant language
Terrible conditions and lifelong harm
Human trafficking can cause lasting physical and psychological harm. Victims of human trafficking may experience:
- Unsafe living and working conditions
- Physical, sexual, financial, and psychological abuse and injury
- Chronic illnesses and other health related issues
- Substance use and addiction
- Emotional and psychological trauma
Spotting human trafficking close to home
Stories of human trafficking
Sabrina
Sabrina was 18 years old and had already spent five years in a relationship with her boyfriend who frequently assaulted her and controlled her phone. He threatened her with violence to get her to provide sexual services to clients in hotels and to hand over all of her earnings to him.
Daniel
Daniel was 35 years old when he was offered a job online, working at a restaurant in Canada. He left his home country with high hopes, but when he arrived, he was forced to work 18 hour days with little to no pay. When he objected, his boss threatened to call the police and have him deported if he didn't do what they wanted.
Jesse
After ongoing conflict with her mom, Jesse left home to stay with friends. Shortly after, she befriended a young couple and decided to move in with them. The couple gave her drugs and alcohol until they had full control over her. Then they took her to different cities to provide sexual services to strangers under threat of physical assault.
