Australia’s eSafety Commission has joined the Republic of Korea (South Korea) to raise awareness of the harm caused when intimate images of people were shared without their consent.
eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant and Chairman of the Korea Communications Standards Commission, Jung Yun-Joo signed a joint statement on image-based abuse and digital sex crimes.
Ms Inman Grant (pictured right) said the threatened or actual sharing of intimate images and videos was known as image-based abuse in Australia, was a digital sex crime in Korea, and was a crime in both countries.
“This issue affects Australians and Koreans in the same way, creating anxiety and distress and leaving deep, enduring emotional scars,” she said.
“In Australia, image-based abuse affects one in 10 Australians and it disproportionately harms younger women from the ages of 18 to 25 where the incidence is one in five.
“Our nations are unwilling to tolerate this behaviour and we are committed to addressing this scourge together.”
Ms Inman Grant said she would work with Mr Jung (pictured left) more broadly to promote greater international recognition of the need to end this type of abuse among Governments, the tech industry and civil society organisations.
Mr Jung said it was a pervasive issue that could cause those subjected to the abuse devastating harm and the Korea Communications Standards Commission, like eSafety in Australia, responded quickly to helping victims of digital sex crimes.
“Our two countries will strengthen our collaboration by sharing insights and best practice on this issue, and work together to raise awareness of the harmful effects caused by the non-consensual sharing of intimate images,” he said.
“The borderless nature of this type of crime means we must work on a global scale to safeguard people online,” Mr Jung said.
The four-page joint statement can be accessed at this PS News link.
