AI helping traffickers identify modern slavery victims as exploitation 'greater than ever'

Artificial intelligence is helping traffickers identify victims of modern slavery "at scale", a new report has warned.

As latest data shows the number of potential victims of modern slavery referred to the Home Office hit a new record high in 2025, a new report commissioned by the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner (IASC) called for a change in approach as the scale of the problem is "greater than ever".

The report stated that without a change in approach to tackling the issue "there is a real risk that exploitation will not disappear, but instead become harder to detect, more digital, and more deeply embedded in everyday economic and social activity".

It warns that AI and other technologies are helping traffickers "identify, recruit and control victims at scale", citing AI-enabled scams, deepfakes, synthetic identities and new forms of digital labour exploitation which the report said was expanding the pool of victims and making exploitation more difficult to detect.

There were 23,411 potential victims of modern slavery referred to the Home Office in 2025 - the highest number of referrals made in any year since the national referral mechanism (NRM) began in 2009.

Commissioner Eleanor Lyons called on the government to make tackling slavery "a clear priority" by setting up a committee with an existing cabinet minister responsible for action on the issue.

Funding for specialist police units should be increased and a national awareness campaign launched so people can recognise and report the signs of exploitation, the commissioner said.

She also said businesses should face fines and prosecution for exploitation if abuses are found.

Read more from Sky News:
'I feel invisible': Civil service retirees suffer from pension backlog
UK's worst airports for flight delays revealed

She said: "Slavery and the most harrowing forms of exploitation are becoming more widespread in this country and evolving faster than we can respond.

"Behind these numbers are real people being abused in ways most of us would struggle to imagine, whether it's women forced into the sex trade, children coerced into drug gangs, or workers trapped in brutal conditions with no way out, often living in absolute fear.

"This is happening in plain sight, in homes, workplaces and online, as criminals use increasingly sophisticated methods to target and control victims without being detected.

"As exploitation becomes more complex and more hidden, driven by technology and global instability, it will spread further and become harder to stop unless we act now."

The backlog of decisions on modern slavery cases, which the government has pledged to clear by the end of this year, is down by two-thirds, the latest data showed.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "Modern slavery is a global scourge that abuses and exploits people for profit.

"We are committed to reviewing the modern slavery system to reduce opportunities for misuse of the system, whilst also ensuring that we have the right protections for those who need it.

"We are working with brave survivors to inform policy development and improve the process of identifying victims.

"We have also taken immediate action to reduce the backlog of cases, ensuring victims get swift decisions and the support they need to rebuild their lives."

(c) Sky News 2026: AI helping traffickers identify modern slavery victims as exploitation 'greater than ever'