The technological development and universalized use of smart devices has constantly increased social problems and crimes. In particular, the microminiaturization of smart devices and cameras has gradually made the issue of illegal photography get wors...
The technological development and universalized use of smart devices has constantly increased social problems and crimes. In particular, the microminiaturization of smart devices and cameras has gradually made the issue of illegal photography get worse since the early part of 2000. Recently, crimes using 'nonconsensual pornography,' which is also called 'revenge porno,' have reached the serious level. Although the 'crime of nonconsensual pornography,' a type of digital sex offense, requires us to recognize the problems caused by the distribution of videos and work on countermeasures, regardless of the victim's consent to photography, blaming the victim for consent to photography and paying attention to the videos showing the victim may attract greater attention to the victim, instead of focus on punishment of the offender, and lead to collateral damage. The shooting and distribution of pornography is punished for the 'Crime of Taking Photos Using Cameras, Etc.'; it is urgent to have social awareness that distribution of personal sex videos is a serious crime, which makes the victims have difficulty in leading a daily life and rather causes them to change their name, emigrate, undergo plastic surgery, and make an extreme choice of suicide.
The victims of digital sexual violence actually have no centralized system of submitting and reporting relevant cases; investigators confirm victimization unsuccessfully and their lukewarm measure makes the submission of cases rejected. Ultimately, the collection of evidences of nonconsensual pornography and the close relationships between pornography distributors and businesses increase the damage to the victims. To grasp the problems and work on measures against nonconsensual pornography through typical cases, this study made the following legislative suggestions through reinforcement of punishment and legal revisions.
First, the crime of taking photos using cameras and others is currently punished for the crime of pornography distribution or defamation on the basis of the Information Network Law, instead of the Act on Sexual Violence Punishment. It is necessary to revise and supplement the provisions of Article 14 of the Special Law on Sexual Violence, giving awareness that the crime of distributing digital pornography is subject to severe punishment through prejudication of punishment for digital pornography distributors and a severe sentence for redistributors. It is also necessary to increase the scope of arrest investigation for offenders, taking into account active arrest investigation when the pornography is likely to be distributed. Second, it is necessary to form an investigation team exclusively in charge of digital sexual violence and prevent collateral damage to the victims through unification of the digital sexual violence investigation system and collect evidences of the images and prevent their redistribution through investigation by police officers in full charge. Lastly, it is necessary to reinforce monitoring by the Korea Communications Commission, prevent future distribution through active search and seizure for digital devices and online institutions in relation to photography and distribution, reinforce search into cyberspace through necessary forfeiture of filming media in pursuit of distribution prevention, and remove the likelihood of distribution completely through active measures.
Actually, social awareness and evaluation of nonconsensual pornography among digital sex offense has not drastically changed yet. The South Korean society still regards digital crime simply as an element of romantic relationship breakup and dating abuse. It is however necessary to reinforce the current criteria for punishment and make specific countermeasures at the legal and institutional levels on the basis of the awareness that nonconsensual pornography, which is the theme of this study, is a new type of serious crime in the South Korean society, not the target of brief attenti...