'Despicable' people smugglers targeting migrants on TikTok

"Despicable" people smugglers who are "exploiting vulnerable people" through social media face severe penalties, the Home Office has warned. 

A spokesperson said gangs were "peddling lies on social media and placing [people] in horrendous conditions, working for next to nothing".

They said the government is working with social media companies and authorities to remove online adverts promoting dangerous small boat crossings.

The comments come after a Times investigation found smugglers were offering migrants "package deals" on TikTok to be smuggled to the UK.

The adverts, mostly aimed at Albanian migrants, promise "specialised people" will collect new arrivals, give them accommodation and find them jobs.

The adverts also suggest they take advantage of Christmas chaos at airports to sneak into the UK.

Sky News understands the content has since been removed by TikTok and the app is working closely with law enforcement and industry partners to find and remove these types of videos.

In response, the Home Office said the UK has robust plans for the Christmas and New Year period.

It also noted that arrests for illegal working have risen by nearly a third compared with the same time last year, while enforced returns are up by a quarter.

In a Sky News investigation last year, Europe correspondent Adam Parsons exposed how people smuggling works, often starting with adverts on social media sites like TikTok.

One advert removed earlier this year said in Albanian: "We take people to the UK by speedboat. It is a done deal within 45 minutes. The crossing is 100% guaranteed (safe)."

Since then, the National Crime Agency has stepped up efforts to disrupt gangs using online platforms to recruit migrants to cross the Channel on small boats.

In July, it revealed adverts showing people smugglers offering a 100% safety guarantee and a competition to win €500 were among almost 12,000 taken down from social media by the agency.

One advert featuring the image of a speedboat's two outboard motors said in Albanian: "We take people to the UK by speedboat. It is a done deal within 45 minutes.

"The crossing is 100% guaranteed (safe). Do not waste [this opportunity]. Soon we will be ready [to depart]. Write privately."

On Friday, 305 migrants arrived in the UK in five small boats that crossed the English Channel.

It came after arrivals by small boat reached 150,000 on Boxing Day - seven years after the government started recording the data in 2018.

Social media specialist lawyer Yair Cohen told Sky's national correspondent Tom Parmenter that the government's response to people trafficking has been "pretty poor" and it has "very poor presence on social media".

"It is very easy to blame social media platforms and I agree, they have got a role to play here, however at the same time they are just a venue and they deal with many millions of posts," he said.

He urged the government to use social media and advertising to tell people about the danger of people trafficking, and also to track down the criminals posting their own adverts by "following the money".

Mr Cohen said adverts need to be paid for so the government could "very easily" find out who is paying for them.

(c) Sky News 2024: 'Despicable' people smugglers targeting migrants on TikTok