How has HSI’s approach to combating child trafficking changed since 2020 and what are current priorities (2025)?

1. HSI moved from dispersed efforts to a centralized “center” model

In October 2020 DHS opened the Center for Countering Human Trafficking (CCHT) to co‑locate DHS functions — operations, victim assistance, intelligence, and outreach — under a coordinated “4 Ps” framework (prevention, protection, prosecution, partnerships), explicitly led by HSI to provide whole‑of‑government support for trafficking investigations and victim services ^{[1] [3]}.

2. A stated shift toward a victim‑centered, identification‑first approach

HSI’s public materials repeatedly emphasize a victim‑centered approach that places equal value on identifying, rescuing and stabilizing victims as on investigating and prosecuting traffickers; HSI says this approach has driven development of forensic interview guidance, remote interviewing during COVID, and initiatives to convert CSAM analysis into victim‑identification leads ^{[4] [5] [6]}.

3. Technology and specialized labs to handle massive CSAM workloads

HSI and DHS describe investments in technology, forensic capacity and specialized task forces (e.g., INTERCEPT, labs) to examine enormous volumes of images and video and to turn unidentified CSAM series into investigative leads — an approach that underpins operations like ORHIII, which DHS says produced 386 probable identifications and 56 identified/rescued victims in Spring 2025 ^{[7] [2]}.

4. Measurable operational outputs since 2020: arrests, investigations, rescues

DHS reporting credits HSI with thousands of investigations and arrests in recent years: for FY 2024 the CCHT annual report notes HSI‑initiated 1,686 criminal investigations related to sex trafficking and forced labor and 2,545 arrests, and DHS fact sheets cite 1,567 child rescues and 4,460 arrests tied to online child sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA) across DHS/HSI work; other HSI releases recount local rescues and multi‑agency operations ^{[8] [2] [9]}.

5. Expansion of outreach, training and public education as a preventative front

HSI and DHS have scaled training and awareness: the Blue Campaign reports 170 national trainings reaching more than 24,000 participants, and Secret Service/CCHT “ambassadors” increased presentations (e.g., 1,108 presentations reaching 81,000 stakeholders in FY2024), reflecting sustained emphasis on prevention and partner capacity building ^{[2] [8]}.

6. Partnership strategy: task forces, federal‑local coalitions and NGOs

HSI’s model emphasizes task forces and partnerships — participation in more than 90–120 task forces nationally, creation of local coalitions like Operation T.E.N., and formal DHS coordination roles — intended to leverage local actors for victim identification and prosecutions ^{[10] [11] [4]}.

7. Evolving priorities in 2025: focus areas highlighted in DHS reporting

By 2024–2025 DHS/HSI documents signal priorities: intensifying online CSEA identification and rescue through forensic CSAM analysis (e.g., ORHIII); expanding victim services and remote forensic interviewing; training across sectors; and integrating anti‑forced‑labor work (imported goods) into trafficking efforts under the DHS strategy ^{[2] [6] [3] [8]}.

8. Areas of disagreement, limitations, and missing details in reporting

Public DHS and HSI releases emphasize successes and output metrics but do not disclose internal budgetary or staffing shifts tied to these priorities in the available materials; independent coverage raising concerns about shifting mission emphasis or morale is present in other reporting but is not substantively documented in the DHS/HSI sources provided here — available sources do not mention HSI budget numbers or internal staffing changes since 2020 ^{[2] [8] [12]}. Critics in external reporting allege mission drift and funding uncertainty in 2025, but those critiques are separate from DHS’s official statements ^[12].

Conclusion: Since 2020 HSI has institutionalized a centralized, victim‑centered, technology‑enabled approach via the CCHT and related task forces, prioritizing CSAM analysis, victim identification/rescue, prosecutorial partnerships, and broad prevention/training; DHS public reporting through 2024–2025 quantifies substantial investigative activity and rescues, while gaps remain in publicly available data about internal resourcing and long‑term outcomes ^{[1] [2] [8]}.