Presenter Bio
Michael Shively is an applied researcher whose core objective throughout a 35-year career has been to provide practitioners, policymakers, and advocates with information and tools to support their efforts to prevent and respond to the victimization of vulnerable populations. Between 2002 and 2023 he received a continuous series of nine federal grants to lead research on the perpetration, victimization, and system responses to both survivors and offenders in human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation. His research on the consumer-level demand that drives all sex trafficking markets includes a rigorous evaluation of a program designed to deter sex buyers. He founded and directs Demand Forum, a website documenting prevention tactics that have been used in more than 3,885 cities and counties throughout the U.S. His prior research includes developing a method for producing valid estimates of human trafficking prevalence; examining the traits and motivations of convicted human traffickers; and conducting a national survey on police responses to human trafficking. He has presented on these and other issues at legislative hearings, training programs, expert workgroups, and at conferences convened by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; U.S. Department of State; U.S. Department of Health and Social Services; U.S. Department of Justice; National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Center for Disease Control and Prevention; International Association of Chiefs of Police; International Association of Human Trafficking Investigators; National Association of Attorneys General; Massachusetts Bar Association; American Public Health Association; Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences; and the American Society of Criminology. He has served as a Senior Advisor to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation and Street Grace; as a Senior Associate at Abt Associates; as an Assistant Professor at the College of Criminal Justice, Northeastern University; and as Deputy Director of Research for the Massachusetts Department of Correction.
Start Date
10-6-2025 10:45 AM
End Date
10-6-2025 11:15 AM
Field of Study
Non-Profit
Abstract
Transaction Intercept (TI) leverages artificial intelligence to engage individuals responding to online ads for the commercial sexual exploitation of minors. The interactions between TI bots and those clicking on decoy ads generate data, including the number of distinct individuals that respond to ads over any timeframe, the number of active sex buyers identified, the features of the ads and digital personas that buyers have responded to, and the outcome of the interactions. During development, TI has already been deployed in dozens of U.S jurisdictions and collected data allows for cross-site comparisons. The technology was created for law enforcement agencies, and its deployment quickly provides measures of the scope and traits of local consumer-level demand for the sex trafficking of children within any defined jurisdiction. The data resulting from TI are directly relevant for local sex trafficking resource needs assessments and to advocate for effective state laws and policies.
Included in
Measuring the Magnitude and Traits of Local Consumer Demand for Sex Trafficking
Transaction Intercept (TI) leverages artificial intelligence to engage individuals responding to online ads for the commercial sexual exploitation of minors. The interactions between TI bots and those clicking on decoy ads generate data, including the number of distinct individuals that respond to ads over any timeframe, the number of active sex buyers identified, the features of the ads and digital personas that buyers have responded to, and the outcome of the interactions. During development, TI has already been deployed in dozens of U.S jurisdictions and collected data allows for cross-site comparisons. The technology was created for law enforcement agencies, and its deployment quickly provides measures of the scope and traits of local consumer-level demand for the sex trafficking of children within any defined jurisdiction. The data resulting from TI are directly relevant for local sex trafficking resource needs assessments and to advocate for effective state laws and policies.
