The document discusses the rise of internet-based prostitution and its implications. It notes that around 80,000 people are involved in prostitution in the UK according to government figures. Websites dedicated to various forms of prostitution have increased. The government has identified problems related to prostitution including impacts on neighborhoods, health issues, links to criminality, abuse, and human trafficking. Studies have shown that the internet allows buyers to specify certain sex acts and physical attributes more easily than through traditional street-based sex work. The document includes an example online discussion advocating for a degrading sex act that few sex workers are willing to perform.

1. Cyberwhores & Cyber-rent: Who pays the price? Chris Ashford Senior Lecturer in Law University of Sunderland