(ABC 6 News) — The U.S. State Department estimates that over 27 million people globally are exploited for labor, services, and commercial sex trafficking.

Traffickers are increasingly targeting the most vulnerable, including children because of unfettered access online.

“Just as much as you would check in with your child at the end of the day about what you ate for lunch or who you played with at recess, we encourage you to have those same conversations with youth about maybe what apps they’re using or who they’re talking to online,” Safe Harbor Regional Director of Olmsted County Victim Services Andrea White said.

Technology can also be a great weapon against traffickers, which is why Cerro Gordo County Sheriff Kevin Pals has partnered with CL Tel to utilize a nationwide human trafficking database and training. However, he still believes the public is the greatest asset.

“I think the best thing that’s going to help us is if people see something suspicious, they tell somebody,” Cerro Gordo County Sheriff Kevin Pals said. “The only way to stop it is have the public help us because law enforcement can’t be everywhere. This has got to be stopped through the public.”

Unfortunately, trafficking can take on many forms and exploit victims in the open or undercover. This can be seen in a Rochester case in which a woman was brought to the country with a family allegedly as a domestic employee. Later, she escaped and claimed she was abducted from her home country and forced to work as a domestic servant for no pay.

Related: BCA finishes investigation into Rochester labor trafficking; refers case to Olmsted County

“The allegation is that somebody is being kept in an environment where they are not free to go, and they are also not being paid for their services,” Olmsted County attorney Mark Ostrem said.

A western Iowa college is also being embroiled in a labor trafficking controversy. Lawsuits allege students from Brazil and Chile were enticed to come to Iowa for schooling and were instead exploited for their labor in a food processing plant and dog food factory.

With cases like these in our backyards, it is important to have resources available. To report human trafficking, call 1-888-373-7888 or text 233733.