A few years ago, the National Human Trafficking Hotline found itself overwhelmed with reports after rumors began spreading online that a prominent home-goods company was a front for child sex trafficking. The report was totally debunked, but it’s a good example of the abundance of misinformation about sex trafficking that is flooding the Internet. And with families spending more time at home and online, plus sharply rising rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide in adolescents, the threat of online child exploitation is more urgent than ever.

Besides increased child exploitation, conspiracy theories are detrimental to law enforcement, overwhelming hotlines and causing delays getting victims the help they need.

Help Locker is a TikTok account that offers real information about sex trafficking, dispelling all the myths and crazy rumors. It was created for Street Grace, a nonprofit dedicated to eradicating child trafficking and exploitation. The account is targeted to Gen Z teenagers using videos that share bite-sized facts and advice on how to stay safe from online dangers.

Our solution was to share the truth about sex trafficking and try to debunk all the crazy rumors by launching a TikTok account and creating both timely and relevant content. #TrafficTok was created for Street Grace, a nonprofit dedicated to ending child trafficking and exploitation, and offers real information about sex trafficking, dispelling all the myths and crazy rumors. The account is targeted to Gen Z teenagers using videos that share bite-sized facts and advice on how to stay safe from online dangers. Each video and meme convey important, relevant information but in the tone and style that has become popular on TikTok. The account also drives to HelpLocker.org where additional resources and answers to frequently asked questions can be found.

Since its launch, the Help Locker account has amassed over 153k followers,

15 million views and 3 million likes. These results completely surpassed our goals, especially since the effort had $0 media support.