Steven Broad TRAFFIC Presentation at the 4th OECD Task Force meeting on Countering Illicit Trade, 18-19 April 2016. The Task force on Countering Illicit Trade (TF-CIT) aims to enhance the co-ordination capacity and risk awareness of enforcement bodies. During the presentations governments were invited to share their experiences and views in terms of enforcement policy initiatives, along with participating a policy dialogue involving industry, think tanks and academia.

1. 4th OECD Task Force
meeting on Countering
Illicit Trade
18-19 April 2016
OECD Conference Centre
Paris, France
Session 2: Enforcement challenges in
countering illicit trade over the internet
Illicit wildlife goods
Steven Broad
Executive Director

2. Rising Illegal Wildlife Trade

3. 218,155 pangolins in reported seizures between 2000-2012
(Background report on illegal trade in elephant, rhino, big cats and pangolins, 2013, TRAFFIC)
19,000 tortoises and freshwater turtles seized in Thailand between 2008-2013
(Seizures of Tortoises and Freshwater Turtles in Thailand 2008-2013, 2014, TRAFFIC)
20,500 tons of abalone poached and illegally traded between 2004-2014
(South Africa’s illicit abalone trade: An updated overview and knowledge gap analysis, 2014, TRAFFIC)
Beyond the headlines

4. Trade Evolution
Number of internet users in the world
Source: http://www.internetlivestats.com/internet-users/
(estimate for July 1 2016)

5. Based on previous surveys, TRAFFIC’ Beijing office started
to undertake monthly surveys of selected Chinese-language
websites for eight key endangered species in January 2012.
31 Websites:
Craigslist Platforms, e.g.
Specialized Collectables Websites, e.g.
Specialized Collectables Forums, e.g.
Online Shopping platforms, e.g.
E-COMMERCE RESEARCH
http://www.traffic.org/home/2015/3/3/traffics-e-commerce-monitoring-reveals-shifting-illegal-wild.html

6. Key word searching: e.g.
ivory
In January 2012, three
key words for ivory--“象
牙, XY & xiangya”
By June 2015, 22 key
words--“African
materials, yellow
materials, white plastic,
jelly, etc.”
Increasing Numbers of Keywords and Websites
E-Commerce: monthly monitoring

7. SOCIAL MEDIA RESEARCH
Examples of advertisements for illegal wildlife products posted
on social media within one month
Species No. of Ads Species No. of Ads
Elephant (Ivory) 10,650 Leopard 18
Rhino 2,493 Pangolin scale 11
Hornbill 1459 Narwhal 5
Tiger 954 Hippo 3
Walrus 170 Zebra 2
Sperm whale 125 Lion 2
Hawksbill 96 Monkey 1
Bear 61 Orcinus orca 1
Saiga horn 43
http://www.traffic.org/home/2015/11/24/traffic-and-tencent-sign-agreement-to-tackle-illicit-wildlif.html

8. Adding
‘Friends’
Advertising
Price
negotiation
Transfer/
payment
Delivery
‘Face-to-face’ scanning;
Friend’s introduction,
Chatting groups;
WeChat subscription,
Websites, etc.
Moments;
Subscription accounts;
Instant messaging;
Third party Apps, etc.
Using private voice
messages toprevent from
keyword monitoring and
reduce risks.
Using WeChat payment
insteadof third party
payment service.
Traders package the parcel
by themselves and use
fake name and address;
Parcel delivered without
checking.
Transaction Flow

9. CHINA: zero tolerance advocacy
Say NO to illegal wildlife trade:
5th July 2013, 15 leading China’s e-
commerce companies
3rd March 2015, 17 leading courier
companies operating in China

10. CHINA: Monitoring > intervention
NGOs
Forest PoliceWebsites

11. Number of total illegal wildlife product advertisements in monitored Chinese websites
(January 2012-September 2015)
results: trade trend
Dynamics of weekly advertisements of illegal ivory trade
posted by 58 traders on a social media site - 2015
15 leading e-commerce companies
pledged zero-tolerance towards
illegal online trade in endangered
species on 5th June 2013.
Enforcement and communications
actions prompted by information
from social media monitoring

12. results: Adaptation

13. • The volume, speed and anonymity of online commerce;
• Hard to differentiate actual offers from fraud and fakes
• Frequently changing key words to conceal the identity of the actual
goods on offer and other means of concealment;
• Difference between online and ‘traditional’ enforcement skills;
• Easily transferred to other platforms
Challenges
Social
networks
Mobile
Chatting
Message
Boards
Micro-
blogging
Instant
Massaging
Video
Sharing

14. • Internet and logistic companies are sensitive to regulatory and public
pressure and reasonably quick to pledge action
• Security systems (filtering, blocking) established for different illicit goods
and services can be adapted, but require expert advice and support
• Government agencies are struggling to keep up with changes in internet
commerce – need partnership with internet companies
• Internet companies can play a critical role in communications aimed to
change consumer behaviour
• Postal and courier companies slower to move from pledges to action –
training and stronger inspection protocols needed
• NGOs are playing a key role in researching new developments and
monitoring impact of government and business actions
Observations

15. Session 2: Enforcement challenges in
countering illicit trade over the internet
Illicit wildlife goods
Steven Broad
Executive Director