What role do engagement and interaction play in traffickers’ profits?

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Engagement and Interaction Drive Trafficker Profits Through Monetisation Programmes

Traffickers profit significantly from illegal wildlife trade facilitated on Meta's platforms due to the company's content monetisation programmes. These programmes, which include advertising revenue sharing and subscription models, incentivise users to generate high levels of interaction and engagement on their accounts. The greater the engagement, the more money these traffickers can potentially earn, creating a direct financial incentive to continue and scale their illicit activities.
Monetisation Incentivises Illegal Activities

Meta's content monetisation strategies, such as sharing advertising revenue and offering subscription models, can inadvertently encourage individuals to engage in illegal acts. By rewarding user engagement, these systems provide a financial benefit to accounts that attract attention, regardless of the nature of the content. This creates a situation where the pursuit of engagement, which leads to monetary rewards, can directly fuel participation in illegal wildlife trafficking.
Increased Engagement Translates to Higher Earnings

The core mechanism driving trafficker profits lies in the direct correlation between account interaction and financial gain. According to independent wildlife trafficking investigator Daniel Stiles, who co-authored a report on the issue, "The more interaction and engagement they get on their account, the more money they can make." This highlights that popular or attention-grabbing content, even if it pertains to illegal activities like wildlife trafficking, becomes more lucrative as it draws more clicks, comments, and shares.
Platforms Facilitate Scaling of Illegal Trade

Research indicates that Meta's platforms, particularly Facebook, have become a central infrastructure for online wildlife trafficking. A report by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC) found over 20,000 adverts for more than 260,000 wildlife products on social media, with nearly three-quarters appearing on Facebook. The algorithmic nature of these platforms further exacerbates the issue, as users who interact with wildlife trafficking accounts are then presented with more similar content, thereby expanding the market and potential customer base for traffickers.

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What role do engagement and interaction play in traffickers’ profits?

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