"Offered In-Game Items": Sexual Exploitation During Gaming... Even Impersonating Counseling Centers [Sexual Exploitation, Out]

② Open Chat Rooms: Hotbeds of Sexual Crimes Against Youth

Editor's NoteChild and adolescent prostitution is defined as sexual exploitation. This is because it is difficult to regard children and adolescents, whose sexual self-determination is immature, as subjects capable of sexual consent or contractual agreement. Children and adolescents who quickly form intimate relationships online through social media, messengers, and anonymous platforms are now more easily caught up in sexual exploitation crimes than in the past. According to the Central Digital Sexual Crime Victim Support Center of the Korea Women's Human Rights Institute, one out of four people (27.8%) who received support for digital sexual crime victimization last year was a teenager. Compared to 2023, the number of teenage victims who received support from the center increased by more than 600 (3.3 percentage points). Crimes of sexual exploitation against children and adolescents are clear acts of sexual abuse. This article examines whether there are ways to prevent such crimes and what specific countermeasures are needed, based on actual cases of victimization.

"There are now even perpetrators pretending to be counseling organizations. There are many open chat rooms claiming to offer counseling, and to avoid arousing suspicion among children, they post anatomical images of reproductive organs from science books. They claim it is for sexual counseling. After gaining the children's trust by pretending to offer advice, they then demand personal information and insist that they need to see the child's body to properly help, asking for photos. The perpetrator takes this opportunity to commit crimes by reproducing these images as sexual exploitation material."

Kim Hyojung, Team Leader of the Counseling Coordination Team at the Central Digital Sexual Crime Victim Support Center of the Korea Women's Human Rights Institute (pictured), described the process of child and adolescent digital sexual crime victimization as a "current trend" in an interview with Asia Economy.

Kim Hyojung, Team Leader of the Counseling and Referral Team at the Central Digital Sexual Crime Victim Support Center of the Korea Women's Human Rights Institute, is being interviewed by Asia Economy. Photo by Yoon Dongju

Kim has worked on the counseling team for three years. She said, "Most digital sexual crime victims are in their teens and twenties," adding, "The number of teenage victims has recently been increasing, which is a concerning situation."

Although there have been numerous cases of children and adolescents being exposed to sexual crimes through open chat rooms, the crimes have not been eradicated and are instead evolving.

"It often starts with games or everyday social networking service (SNS) platforms. After becoming close through game characters, if they feel even closer, they move to one-on-one platforms. From then on, the damage grows worse."

According to Kim, recently, 80-90% of sexual exploitation crimes targeting adolescents occur online. Cases where conditional meetings take place only offline are now extremely rare.

With the widespread use of smartphones, the shadow of crime has moved into the online world. Adolescents who have been exposed to smartphones from a young age tend to be less suspicious in online spaces.

Kim explained, "Because teenagers are so accustomed to the online world, they see gaining more followers as natural and have little resistance to making friends online," adding, "This is an age group that craves attention, so they are pleased when the number of visitors increases."

She added, "Online, perpetrators give gifts and listen to concerns, so they become very appealing to children. Because the perpetrators are kind at first, children open up easily." She continued, "At first, they ask for everyday photos, such as wearing school uniforms, and once personal information is leaked, they isolate the child as soon as they obtain it. From that point, they start demanding photos with excessive exposure."

According to the "Digital Sexual Crime Victim Support Report (2024)" recently published by the Korea Women's Human Rights Institute, most children and adolescents who suffered digital sexual exploitation had only temporary relationships with the perpetrator, such as chat partners or one-time meetings. For those under 10, 63.6% had temporary relationships. Among teenage victims, 1,204 out of 2,863 (42.1%) said their relationship with the perpetrator was temporary, the largest proportion.

Kim said, "Some children mentioned that if they post good photos of themselves on their game or SNS profiles, they receive a lot of instant messages," adding, "I realized there are many perpetrators looking for minor accounts within SNS platforms."

Children and adolescents with disabilities not only have a higher victimization rate compared to their non-disabled peers, but also face a greater risk of repeated victimization. According to the annual report by the Sexual Exploitation Victim Child and Adolescent Support Center, the proportion of children and adolescents with disabilities who received support for sexual exploitation victimization was 9% in 2023, more than three times higher than the proportion of disabled individuals aged 10-19 (2.4%, Ministry of Health and Welfare statistics). The proportion of child and adolescent victims with disabilities has been steadily rising since it was recorded at 6.5% in 2021.

Kim said, "One intellectually disabled victim suffered repeated victimization because of previous experiences of receiving attention and forming relationships online," adding, "Once the interaction moves from the online space to a one-on-one setting, the damage becomes much more severe."

Kim pointed out that the methods of committing digital sexual violence online are becoming increasingly sophisticated. The age of child and adolescent victims is also getting lower. Although related punishment and protection laws have been enacted, she emphasized that everyone-parents, children, and adolescents-must recognize that online platforms themselves are not completely safe for children.

She said, "When parents learn of the victimization, the most important thing is not to blame the child," adding, "Many teenagers cannot refuse at first, thinking 'this much is okay' or 'it's not a crime,' which often leads to greater harm." She continued, "Once the victimization is discovered, it is important to quickly report it through an appropriate counseling organization. Stopping the distribution of images as soon as possible is crucial to prevent further harm."

If you are experiencing difficulties due to digital sexual crimes, domestic violence, sexual violence, prostitution or sexual exploitation, dating violence, or stalking, you can receive support 24 hours a day, 365 days a year through the Women's Emergency Hotline 1366 (☎1366). For counseling related to child and adolescent sexual exploitation victimization, one-on-one anonymous counseling is also available through the Korea Women's Human Rights Institute's youth counseling channel D4Youth (@d4youth).