2024-03-24 12:23:24
The ‘Online Sexual Exploitation Reporting’ application for children and adolescents created by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family will be piloted from the end of April at the earliest.
According to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (hereinafter referred to as the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family) on the 15th, a dedicated app that will allow children or adolescents to immediately report online grooming incidents will be released at the end of next month. The app is one of the five major violence victim protection and support systems promoted by the government. This is because the damage caused by digital sex crimes among teenagers is serious.
According to the Korea Women’s Human Rights Agency’s Digital Sex Crime Center, of the 13,000 people who requested counseling for digital sex crime victims from 2018 to 2022, about 25% were in their teens or younger. In addition, last year, a total of 243,855 recorded videos of digital sex crimes were supported for deletion by the Digital Sex Crime Victim Support Center, of which 21.6% were sexual exploitation of children and adolescents (52,685 cases).
Specifically, this app is designed to immediately notify children and adolescents if they suspect sexual exploitation or have suffered damage online. It is also possible for a third party to immediately report a grooming incident through the app. There is also no need for identity verification. This is because youth may be hesitant to ask for help if there is a separate procedure for identity verification. If children leave a SNS (social network) ID such as Instagram in the reporting app, a counselor will receive the report and provide counseling.
In order for an app to become popular, it must be able to be installed on multiple smartphone models. However, the app can only be downloaded on Android OS (operating system) mobile phones such as Samsung Electronics Galaxy smartphones during the trial period.
Apps cannot be installed on iPhones, which are preferred by teenagers. Due to Apple’s unique closed policy, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family decided not to create iPhone apps during the pilot period. Even if the app is officially released, it is unclear whether it will be supported on Apple devices.
An official from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family said, “The app operates as a background app, and when a teenager detects suspicions of sexual exploitation, the app is called and the screen is captured and submitted. However, this method of operation is currently used on iPhone due to issues with app access permissions. “It is difficult to implement, and we must continue to review how to proceed,” he said.
Additionally, since this app does not have a separate identity authentication process, systematic monitoring of false reports is also necessary. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family said, “We plan to check in detail whether the situation requires a report by looking at screen captures and other materials before proceeding.”
Reporter Shin Min-seop Photo News 1
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2024-03-24 12:23:24