Facebook has announced that they are curating a database of reported ‘revenge porn’ images in an attempt to curtail the practice on the social network.
Revenge Porn on Social Networks
Revenge porn is not a new concept. It can come in many different shapes and forms. For online scammers, they may use video recorded from intimate Skype sessions to extort money. More often, it is an ex-partner of the victim sharing the photos of clips in an attempt to humiliate their former lover.
Such tactics have been shown to have significant impact on the victim’s life, including causing social and employment problems. Facebook also points out the significant stress and emotional damage it can cause, to have their trust and body violated in such a way.
Legal Implications
The issue of revenge porn was, for many years, tricky to prosecute. According to the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, 35 states, plus the city of Washington D.C, have laws regarding intimate images shared without consent. In some states, such as Florida, it can constitute a felony.
Back in 2014, Hunter Moore, scummy owner of the website Is Anyone Up?, was sentenced to $500,000 in fines, two years in federal prison, and three years of probation for his continuous hosting of user-submitted revenge porn. Not only did he post the images, but often personal information of the victims (almost all women), and their social media profiles.
Facebook’s New Strike
Facebook hopes to eliminate revenge porn on their site, which has been a problem for years. They are setting up a database of banned photos that have been reported by users. That database can be automatically searched, matching images as they are sent through Messenger, or posted to a profile. If it matches a database image, it will not be possible to post it.
In addition, any revenge porn reported will leave to a closure of any account found sharing it.
This is both a good and a bad move on the part of the network. On one hand, it is trying to combat a horrible practice. On the other, they will be keeping a database filled with images of users who have been victimized.
To dd to the creepiness, does this mean every image sent on Facebook is going to be run against this database? What if it triggers, even though it isn’t the same photo? What could this open the door to in the future?
Sources: Facebook, Washington Post, CCRI
