The BBC warns that a website offering sex workers “like takeaways” is placing women at risk.
Vivastreet was founded in France by a French businessman. It is a free classifieds site where you can post anything, from second-hand furniture to cars. But there is also an ‘adult’ section where users can pay £50 a week to advertise sexual services, according to BBC Panorama.
It is legal to sell sex workers’ services in the UK. However, pimps as well as people traffickers make use of this platform online to pretend to be women and get paid.
Reporter Bronagh Munro investigated Vivastreet for Panorama: Online Pimps Exposed and found how it has become a go-to for pimps and is brought up ‘time and time again’ in exploitation cases.
These are shocking scenes from a police officer A raid at a Lancashire address revealed a woman alone, in filthy hotel rooms, with her man (who she claimed was her boyfriend). The Vivastreet advertisement for a sex worker was posted by the suspected pimp. For £180 an hour, punters could pay for ‘kissing, massage and sex in different positions.’
A separate number listed on Vivastreet led an undercover reporter to a brothel where women offered to do ‘anything’ for £250.
Bronagh, a BBC journalist, conducted an investigation into pimps operating on Vivastreet. She revealed the ways the site facilitates the exploitation and exploitation of women. Lancashire Police joined her in a raid at a home where officers discovered a woman and a man trying to arrange sexual services.
Texts on the man’s phone revealed how punters paid £180 for an hour of ‘kissing, massage and sex in different positions’. Also, he received text messages via a Vivastreet phone number
Vivastreet is a classifieds site that allows users to list everything from vehicles to used furniture free of charge. But there is also an ‘adult’ section where sex workers and pimps pay £50-a-week to advertise their services to punters
Author and activist Kat Banyard said: ‘Vivastreet is a magnet for sex traffickers, and that’s because Vivastreet makes it so quick and easy to advertise women to sex buyers.
“The website has the ability to concentrate and centralize demand from men all over the country willing to sexually exploit females. This is their customer base. Naturally they will. They will be a great gift.
Dame Diana Johnson, MP for Kingston upon Hull North, who described the UK as a ‘pimp’s paradise’ and told the BBC: ‘I mean, Vivastreet is pimping women. I think that’s exactly what they do. They enable women to be pimps.
“And, in many other cases, pimping has been made a crime. This case is different. The problem seems to be the opposite and that Parliament must address.
The Lancashire Police Detective Sergeant Stuart Peall conducted a welfare-and-securing check at a terraced home. They found a single woman living in filthy upstairs bedrooms and a man she claimed to be her boyfriend.
However, his phone was filled with messages from men arranging sex services and texts from Vivastreet numbers reminding him of the need to renew his ads.
The Lancashire Police Detective Sergeant Stuart Peall pictured carrying out welfare and safeguarding checks on a terraced home. They found a single woman living in filthy upstairs bedrooms and a man she claimed to be her boyfriend.
Peall stated that Vivastreet is a’massive” role in the sex market. Vivastreet, he stated, is a place where sexual services can be found.
Peall stated that he brought down his phone, unlocked it, and we went straight to the messages. They are littered daily back to August, with various sexual services being organized… Peall said that he is in complete control of the prostitution.
The sale of sex is legal here in England, but pimping is prohibited.
He was accused of controlling and trafficking prostitution to gain but Vivastreet sees him as a valued client.
Peall said that Vivastreet has a’massive” role in the sex market.
Vivastreet will provide you with sexual services. You can make the girl look exactly how you like it. It’s almost like ordering take-out.
He said, “There’s no job that we’ve not done that’s not Vivastreet.” They advertise every job on Vivastreet.
Munro said that every night, 12,000 women are ‘for-sale’ on Vivastreet in the UK.
Below, the crew visited a Birmingham address that was linked to a woman listed on Vivastreet. Every night, Vivastreet lists 12,000 women.
As seen on this footage, men were seen wandering about outside of the Birmingham property. This was taken from an unreleased recording made by BBC.
Crew visited a Birmingham address associated with a woman on Vivastreet. Outside, men were waiting for the opportunity to enter the property.
Munro claimed that this website made millions and has appeared in numerous cases of sex-trafficking and pimping.
The documentary highlighted the case of one sex trafficker who spent £25,000 on adverts on Vivastreet and was even given his own account manager.
The website data showed that the same number of mobile phones was being used in multiple accounts. This suggests that the women are being managed by one person.
Multiple accounts used the exact same language, and had the same spelling errors. This suggests that they may be controlled by pimps.
A reporter undercover called one number and said, “I like generous gentlemans.”
Posing as someone looking to hire sex workers for a party, he ended up at a terraced property where he was shown women who would be available to hire for £250 each for two hours.
She stated that he could decide what women wear, and could even have sex with them.
Posing as someone looking to hire sex workers for a party, an undercover reporter ended up at a terraced property where he was shown women who would be available to hire for £250 each for two hours, above. Through a Vivastreet listing, he found the number.
“Striptease dancing, striptease and partying – whatever you like.” It took two hours. The choice is yours, the one that you love, or one for each friend. He can have fun with anyone he likes and you can make changes to the girls if necessary. If not, the girl can be kept for two hours.
Explaining the willingness of women, she stated: “They aren’t like, “oh… oh… oh,” you know like some girls [who]Don’t do that, don’t! Not like some girls. There are no problems.
Later the women said that they did their own work and had no need for a pimp. However, one of them looked older than the rest and was likely to follow the instructions from the woman in charge.
After the reporter had left, the woman in her younger years was taken outside and escorted to the car. She was wearing just her underwear.
Undercover journalist said that she saw her in just her underwear. They are vulnerable and being exploited, I believe.
“They may not realize the extent of their exploitation. Their behavior was clearly controlled, and I doubt they even see the brothel and other places where they are being taken.
Uncover journalists also visited the homes of a suspect pimp in Northern Ireland. It is illegal to charge for sex.
He said that he prefers to have one girl per apartment and that she must be at least 18 years old. He stated that police are unable to do any of these things and nobody else can.
Two Romanian women were captured being dropped at the property of a suspected pimp by cameras. Their ads appear within days on Vivastreet, and the men turn up at their door.
A suspected pimp was also captured picking up a female passenger at Dublin Airport and driving her to a Belfast address. An undercover reporter later visited the apartment, where she told him her fee was £100 for half an hour.
Program host questioned the suspected pimp about their false claims. He doesn’t break any laws, and he won’t use anyone for his money’.
Although the personals section on the Vivastreet website has been closed in France, it can be accessed in the UK.
According to Detective Sergeant Peall, the site would have prevented a lot of the exploitation. He said, “It’s all advertising, it’s about the pimp selling the public them’.”
Vivastreet said: Our top priority is to provide a secure platform. [and it is]We are committed to eliminating all potential exploitation. The company has put in place a variety of strict measures to identify criminality. This year, more than 29,000 advertisements were rejected. The company claimed that automated messages such as those sent to the suspect pimp at the first house were not directed to any specific user.
There are also other signs that could be a warning sign. We may see ads with the same phrases or words in multiple places. Even the spelling mistakes are common. These are classic signs these women appear to be being controlled and managed.
Vivastreet denies primping and stated that it ‘proactively reports suspicious content to the police across the country and assists with prosecutions. According to it, they are ‘collaborating with police and the Home Office to devise an industry-wide plan to combat exploitation of online trafficking and exploitation’.
According to it, the police work with charity and other agencies to ‘continuously reinforce safety measures.’ Staff receive training to ensure they’re ‘alert’ to signs of exploitation and what to do if they suspect that someone is trafficking. The ‘independent verification program’ is available for high-risk advertisers.