An independent, UN-backed body is calling on governments to do more to regulate social media platforms that glamourise drug-related negative behaviour and boost sales of controlled substances.
In its annual report, released last week, the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) noted increasing evidence of a link between exposure to social media and drug use.
According to the report, it disproportionately affects young people, the primary users of social media platforms, and an age group with relatively high drug abuse rates.
The report also calls on the private sector to moderate and self-regulate their platforms and limit the advertisement and promotion of the non-medical use of drugs.
The document notes that as well as social media platforms, criminals exploit many other digital tools, which make the international transfer of funds easier and faster and allow them to hide the origins of illegal funds and maximise profits.
Those tools include digital currencies, mobile payments, and e-wallet services.
According to the report, organised crime rings continue to rake in millions of dollars from drug trafficking, bringing negative consequences such as violence and corruption.
It recommended that governments address all stages of drug trafficking – from production and cultivation, to sale and concealment of illegal profits – and share intelligence on organised crime at an international level.
