Systematic Sharing of Illegally Filmed Content in Telegram Chat Rooms
Low Level of Punishment for Pornography... No Specific Legal Provisions
A large-scale illegal distribution of sexual exploitation materials, reminiscent of South Korea's 'Nth Room Incident,' has been uncovered in China, sparking widespread public outrage.
On August 2, Southern Daily, Legal Daily, and AFP reported that it was belatedly confirmed that videos and photos of women, illegally filmed, were systematically shared in a Telegram chat room called the 'Maskpark Treehole Forum.'
It is reported that more than 100,000 users from China and abroad participated anonymously in this chat room.
This incident came to light when an e-sports athlete from Ukraine uploaded a video to Telegram. The shock intensified when it was revealed that the female victim in the video had been expelled from her Chinese university for allegedly damaging national dignity.
A significant portion of the videos and photos disclosed in the chat room were secretly filmed in public places such as public restrooms using pinhole cameras. Some users also distributed private images of former partners or family members. Everyday items capable of covert filming were also traded within the chat room.
Additionally, it has been found that among Chinese-language pornography communities on Telegram, there are sub-forums with as many as 900,000 members. While Maskpark has now been shut down, some sub-forums remain active.
In China, there is a growing outcry that this case is similar to South Korea's Nth Room Incident. At that time, the operators of the Nth Room and 'Doctor's Room' produced and distributed sexual exploitation materials of minors and women through threats and enticement. The South Korean courts sentenced the main perpetrators to up to 42 years in prison.
In contrast, in China, even if the filming was non-consensual, the punishment is lenient unless the material is classified as 'pornography.' Typically, this results in administrative detention of up to 10 days or a fine of up to 500 yuan (approximately 100,000 won).
A Chinese legal researcher pointed out, "Telegram is an encrypted platform and its servers are overseas, making investigation and punishment difficult." The researcher also noted, "The distribution of private images requires a high standard of evidence for criminal punishment, and there are not even specific legal provisions for the infringement of adult women's privacy."
In response, Telegram stated, "The sharing of non-consensual pornography is explicitly prohibited by our platform policy and is deleted immediately upon discovery," adding, "Our operations team deletes millions of harmful content items every day."
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