The Sexual Exploitation Research and Policy Institute (SERP) has called on the Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan to investigate the role of so-called 'pimping websites' in the Republic of Ireland.
SERP representatives will present evidence gathered by the institute to Stormont's All-Party Group on Modern Slavery and Sexual Exploitation today.
SERP has found that hundreds of women are advertised to sex buyers across the island of Ireland through various websites.
More than 900 women are advertised daily on one platform, north and south of the border.
The majority are young migrant women, many with a basic command of English, according to findings.
A recent four-week analysis by the institute identified 19 out of 28 recognised indicators of trafficking and sexual exploitation within online profiles.
Researchers found that many of the women were described as "independent escorts", even when they were being directed and heavily controlled by organised crime groups who, according to SERP, run the majority of the sex trade on the island of Ireland.
While women are advertised in graphic detail, the institute has pointed out that sex buyers, pimps and traffickers use 'pimping websites' to remain anonymous and untraceable.
Platforms generate millions in annual profits by advertising trafficked women and girls.
SERP's Director Ruth Breslin welcomed the examination by Stormont and has called for a coordinated, cross-border response.
"However, measures to address the egregiously exploitative sex trade are doomed to failure if we do not take an all-island approach to what is effectively an all-island trade," she said.
The aim of the All-Party Group in Stormont is to raise awareness and tackle the issue of "the reality of modern slavery".
It also aims to "encourage cross-party deliberation on policy and legislative responses to this issue".
