The Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking says the hotline it operates saw a record high for calls last year.
Calls to the Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline hit more than 5,900 calls nationwide in 2025, a 14 per cent increase from 5,100 calls in 2024, the organization said.
The organization said it has seen a year-over-year rise in calls since its launch in 2019.
The majority of calls to the hotline are regarding sex trafficking accounts but the hotline is also seeing a steady increase in labour trafficking cases.
The centre also said that since launching, trafficking incidents were most frequently documented in the largest provinces, such as Ontario, which ranked the highest for 66 per cent of reported trafficking incidents. Alberta saw 11 per cent, British Columbia nine per cent, and Quebec seven per cent.
Meanwhile, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, the Atlantic provinces and the territories saw the lowest rates.
According to the organization, traffickers often enter people’s lives “appearing warm, caring, and supportive.” And said once trust is established, it can be “weaponized to exert control and enable exploitation.”
Get daily National news
Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.
Julia Drydyk, executive director of the Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking, said popular portrayals of human trafficking often emphasize kidnappings and physical restraint but that it is a depiction that distorts how trafficking typically occurs.
“In reality, trafficking rarely begins with force,” Drydyk said. “It starts with grooming, manipulation, and the slow erosion of someone’s choices.”
“That’s why trafficking can happen in plain sight. The control isn’t always visible, but it’s real.”
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
