If you know what 'upskirting' means then you should know that you could go to jail for it!
If you didn't know before, now you will...
We all know those stories of little pervs who would place mirrors on their shoes to look up girls' dresses in school. It was a serious thing that got many of them into trouble, for the obvious reasons of being inappropriate and also violating a female's right to privacy.
But then we hear about this term and it literally leaves a dent in our minds, and not in a good way. The term 'Upskirting', which refers to the taking of nonconsensual photographs under a person's skirt or kilt, capturing an image of the crotch area, underwear, and sometimes genitalia. (Wikipedia)
A new bill of law that was recently passed by Hong Kong regarding the filming and publishing of unlawful explicit recordings brings a completely new meaning to peeping toms.
Of course, it is known that with the abundance of online mediums, it is easier for sexual offenders to distribute their work and become more unlawful in their means. But it just shocks us that this is something that wasn't passed into law earlier.
So people who take inappropriate and nonconsensual photographs up a woman's skirt, down her top, or any intimate body parts, could now face jail time in Hong Kong.
"Hong Kong is the latest jurisdiction to draw up laws outlawing "upskirting" and the sharing of other unlawful explicit recordings at a time when such content has flooded the internet. This includes voyeurism, which is the observing or recording of the intimate acts of others, as well as the publication of photos that originate from voyeurism. It also includes the unlawful recording or observation of the "intimate parts" of a person for a sexual purpose, or upskirting and taking nonconsensual photos down a woman's top." (MSN)
Now more than ever it is so important to be aware of what you store/save and share on social media. Even if you think it is to someone you trust, with the means to hack and the advancements in technology moving at lightning speed, it has become a scarier world than usual.
This is why, if you do share pics, no matter the nature, be sure to be weary of the nature of the pics and how they could be altered. Because as much as you think you are safe because you have protected your account or ticked all the privacy settings, there's someone out there who knows how to bypass those settings...
Image Courtesy of Unsplash Website