Rachel Bardoul, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children - Child Sex Trafficking Team
In the rapidly evolving digital landscape, staying ahead of online trends is critical to identifying and recovering children impacted by sex trafficking. This workshop highlights how the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) leverages donated technologies and open‑source intelligence to support law enforcement nationwide. Participants will learn how NCMEC’s specialized Child Sex Trafficking Analysts provide actionable leads, including victim and trafficker identification, travel patterns, and digital footprints. Through real‑world case examples, the session explores how traffickers operate online—examining the coded language, imagery, and social media tactics used to target and exploit vulnerable youth. This workshop is intended for sworn law enforcement officers and analysts employed by sworn law enforcement agencies only.