We love to live vicariously through social media, text messages and frequent status or Twitter updates. It seems as though nothing is sacred in our private lives.
Even friends of friends can find out anything about you by just opening up a computer. The most private of matters turn public with just an updated profile from "married" to "single": fights between your significant other turn into snarky statuses or public brawls on Facebook walls .
There is a disturbing new trend that invades the private lives of others more than ever before. Revenge porn, more commonly known as the “ex that never deleted those nudes,” has created a new debate.
A once consensual picture that was sent or given to a recent ex means that it is “legal” to make once-private photos or videos available for the whole world via internet. While it seems unusual that there would even be a debate on the legality of revenge porn, the reason so many states haven’t passed similar laws is because there is an issue stating that banning revenge porn restricts free speech granted by the First Amendment.
Only California and New Jersey have laws that ban people from sharing naked pictures or videos of ex-partners without consent. Breaking that law could result in a $1,000 fine and up to six months in jail.
Many people turn to police when they find that sites such as myex.com have picked up their photos are get no help from law enforcement.
In an article from CNN, “According to the officers, nothing could be done because her ex had not engaged in a harassing 'course of conduct,' as required by criminal harassment law, and because he had not explicitly solicited others to stalk her.”
Photos or videos that are sent in confidence to a significant other doesn’t give them consent to make the pictures public or used on a porn website. Revenge porn is cruel, and there should be more rights protecting victims.
Revenge porn is extremely dangerous and in extreme cases has cost victims their jobs, personal lives and their very lives. While action needs to be taken to protect the victims, revenge porn is still legal and people who send sexually explicit photos or videos should be made aware of the consequences of what could happen from an ugly breakup.
Reach the Columnist at Kassidy.McDonald@asu.edu or follow her on Twitter @kassmcdonald.
