Chapter III — The dark side of digital intimacy
Sexuality is a central aspect of being human (WHO, no date). Beyond physical intimacy, sexuality is also experienced and expressed in words, photos and videos among other forms. This human feature is influenced by various factors, including social, cultural, psychological, religious and legal considerations (Ibid.). Every citizen of this world has a right to sexuality, fulfilling their sexual desires and enjoying sexual health, with due regard for the rights of others (Ibid.). Some cultures look down upon the practice of sexuality outside their constructed norms, such as the tradition of marriage. For example, sex outside marriage is a criminal offence in Pakistan (Pakistan Penal Code, 1860, §. 498B).
Franco, Gaggi, and Palazzi (2023, p.1) state that the growing spread of mobile devices and social media platforms has changed the way people form new relationships and express their sexuality. In other words, sexting has gained popularity among mobile device and internet users (Ibid.). They define sexting as the practice of sending or receiving any sexually explicit content, such as one’s nude photos or videos, through digital channels (Ibid.). This practice allows people to have sexual interactions without being physically close to each other, as in long-distance relationships, pandemic-related lockdowns and situations where people seek sexual interactions with strangers (Ibid.).
Unfortunately, practitioners of sexting can fall victim to the spread of their intimate content on the internet without their consent (Ibid.). This puts the leaked content under the purview of nonconsensual intimate images and videos, abbreviated as NCII. In the worst cases, such content might make its way to the internet following a break-up between a couple, whether married or unmarried, or maliciously done by hackers or data thieves, or sent by mistake to others or shared publicly. Moreover, many factors can keep victims from reporting this crime, such as the fear of further victimization and embarrassment due to the private nature of the content (Ibid.) and, in the Pakistani context, a lack of knowledge about the complaint mechanism or access to it (Basit, 2022, pp. 4 & 12).
This can cause never-ending damage to the victims as they live with the fear of being recognized, not knowing how many people have watched the content and how many copies of it are out there (Franco, Gaggi, and Palazzi, 2023, p. 1). Victims can feel powerless due to the impossibility of being certain that they are no longer the object of dissemination. The longer the video stays on the internet, the less likely it is to be completely removed (Ibid.). Such content can go viral within a few minutes after being shared online (Franks, 2017, p. 23). Here, viral refers to any content or media that becomes widely shared through social networking websites and other digital platforms, such as apps (Rouse, 2017). By the time a victim discovers that their intimate photo or video has been leaked on a digital platform and requests its removal, the media may have been downloaded, forwarded, and posted by several other internet users (Franks, 2017, p. 23).
Such content also contributes to digital voyeurism, which may sound similar to porn watching, but here, this terminology is strictly limited to NCII. There are several WhatsApp and social media groups that specifically host leaked intimate content and charge money for joining these digital communities (Bhatti, 2023; Chaudhary, 2023). These images and videos are often tagged as “desi leaks” and “desi leaked videos” on porn websites (Xhamster; Xnxx; X videos). This suggests that there is a niche audience and market for this kind of content. Furthermore, the sexting phenomenon has also emerged in the form of digital narratives, such as AI sex bots and Only Fans (Cost, 2023; Bernstein, 2019).
This unauthorized disclosure of sexually intimate photos and videos is also sometimes referred to as revenge porn (Franks, 2017, p. 12). However, this terminology is misleading because it suggests consent and equates intimacy with pornography (Aceng, 2019), and the word revenge implies that the victim may have done something wrong that provoked the perpetrator (Schweppe, Moorhouse, and Malone, 2019).
The spread of NCII seems to be a highly gendered phenomenon, as most porn websites feature far more women than men, and the majority of court cases and news stories involve female victims and male perpetrators (Franks, 2017, p. 12). This suggests that the increased use of information and communication technology has led to the rise of a new form of gender-based violence (Aceng, 2019).
The NCII is also considered a form of intimate partner violence (Ibid.) and with the internet being used as a medium or tool for this violence, it falls under the domain of cyber harassment. A definition of cyber harassment is the use of cyberspace to harass, control and belittle a target, including men, women and children (DRF, 2019, p. 2). The Digital Rights Foundation Pakistan’s, referred to as DRF’s, report on cyber harassment observed that the phenomenon of violence against women has sped into the digital realm, with misogynist and patriarchal norms dictating this interaction (Basit, 2022, p. 4). This puts gender minorities and vulnerable identities at greater risk of an unsafe online experience because of the anonymity cover the internet provides (Ibid.). Women’s use of the internet stood at 19% in Pakistan in 2019, yet they make up the majority of victims of cyber harassment (Ibid., p. 5).
In 2022, DRF received a total of 2273 complaints of cyber harassment, including NCII and blackmailing from Pakistan (Basit, 2022, pp. 15 & 25). Here, blackmailing refers to asking for sexual or monetary favors over not distributing or tampering with a person’s intimate images or contacting their family (Ibid., p. 25). However, these numbers do not reflect the complete picture or status of cyber harassment in the country because it is the not-for-profit organization’s own data. And the data from Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency, which is responsible for handling cyber-crime matters, is not available. Approximately 30% of the victims of online harassment were in a romantic relationship with the harasser (Ibid., p. 18). Among the reported cases, the victims’ relationship with the harassers as an ex-partner stood at second (Ibid., p.19). While men were the most reported harassers (Ibid., p. 20).
According to DRF, WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram are the platforms where most, up to 53%, cases of cyber harassment have occurred (Ibid., p. 21). From the platform responsibility point of view, it seems that few platforms have adopted measures to stop the NCII spread, especially the commonly used applications that have done very little (Franco, Gaggi, and Palazzi, 2023, p.2). Although WhatsApp allows a feature to remove the content, including text, image, or video, after one view or a specific time period, while Snapchat goes a step ahead and informs the sender if the receiver has taken a screenshot or recorded their content (Ibid.). But these measures do not seem to be enough as the problem has continued to occur.
Given the previous discussion, it seems that in this age when the use of digital technologies for our everyday life and relationships seems indispensable, the privacy of individuals has become fragile. Online intimate communication and expressions are vulnerable to nonconsensual exposures, which can cause endless negative impacts on survivors. In chapter IV, I explore the responsibility of platforms, with a focus on WhatsApp, and the users in containing the NCII spread.
