As the world commemorates the 2026 World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, stakeholders in Benin City have warned that human traffickers are increasingly abandoning traditional recruitment methods for sophisticated online scams targeting young people.
The warning came during a stakeholders’ dialogue organised by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Benin Zonal Command, where participants expressed concern over the use of social media platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok, as well as fake job offers, scholarship opportunities, modelling auditions and online romance schemes to deceive victims.
Chinedu Ekeja reports that this year’s theme, “Trapped Behind the Scam,” highlights the growing use of digital platforms to lure unsuspecting victims into exploitation.