Mobile data challenges for human mobility analysis and humanitarian response

In light of the typical perception of human smuggling and the conditions in which it occurs, the increasing use of (mobile) telephony, the internet, social media and other applications is understood as an enhancement in the sophistication, versatility and reach of the human smuggling business. According to this narrative, smugglers use the Internet, social media and widely popular software applications to recruit customers, to arrange facilitation services, including transportation, accommodation and the provision of fraudulent travel documents, and to make and receive payments. While the official and mainstream narrative is in harmony with the escalating political controversy around irregular migration and the emergence of transnational organized crime as the folk devil of the globalisation era, it far from settles the matter. This chapter explores the question of the role of ICT (Information and Communications Technology) in human smuggling and provides a critical appreciation of the emerging research literature around it.