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Verified By BOOM | 113
Kathua To Kolkata: The Internet Is Obsessed With Rape Videos
Browser View | August 31, 2024 | Subscribe
Hello,
A week after a doctor was raped and murdered in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical hospital, a Telegram channel emerged with the name of the victim. The admin of the group sent just one message, posting multiple links that claimed to have ‘leaked’ photos and videos of the victim. The group has over 25,000 subscribers. Read on!
Wondering how to perform an advanced keyword search on Facebook? ‘Who posted what’ is your answer.
And guess what? It’s a free tool and no login required. If you’re already familiar with Twitter Advanced Search, it will be super easy to navigate this tool.
All you have to do is:
Step 1: Go to the website.
Step 2: Add all the filters that you want to. For example, enter the date range, location, keywords, posts from a particular account, among others.
Step 3: And voila! You will have the required results.
For the benefit of the readers who aren’t aware about Twitter Advanced Search: this is designed solely for Twitter or X. Scanning X accounts can be a tedious task, hence this tool helps you find the required post just by applying some filters.
Kathua To Kolkata: The Internet Is Obsessed With Rape Videos
🔖 A quick search revealed that there are multiple channels and groups on Telegram that have shared links to porn videos with the name of the victim of the Kolkata rape-murder case.
Not the first time: Back in 2018, soon after the news broke of the rape of an 8-year-old in Kathua, news channels quickly identified her with her name and photos on big screens and websites. It didn’t take too long for the Internet to start searching for her ‘rape videos’ on pornographic sites.
On loop: A year after that a Hyderabad woman’s name was searched 8 million times on a porn website a week after she was raped and killed.
Expert’s take: “Rape culture and sexual violence is normalised in the country so it’s predictable that this is happening,” Ntasha Bharadwaj, a criminologist who works on gender violence told Decode’s Adrija Bose. “Our problem is not the law, but normalisation of sexualisation,” she said.
AI Face-Swap Apps Used to Create Videos Of Kolkata Doctor
🔖 Meanwhile, photos of the victim have been edited using an artificial intelligence (AI) face-swap app to make viral YouTube Shorts and Facebook reels, an investigation by Decode’s Karen Rebelo found.
Indian law prohibits revealing the identity of a sexual abuse survivor/victim
Photo Lab is an AI photo editing app that uses face swap tech to create clips
These AI edited videos are generating viral engagement on YouTube
Rohini Lakshané, an independent researcher and technologist, told Decode, that the primary motivation is often money. "This incident is in the news cycle. Channel owners know people are searching for these videos and want to ride the news wave," she explained.
Dating App Grindr Has A Problem But Will Banning It Solve The Problem?
🔖 Grindr ban? The Madras High Court in a recent order has stated that Grindr, a social networking and dating app primarily used by the LGBTQ+ community, is being exploited for committing crimes.
Court’s observation: The court observed that the app was being misused for "prurient and illegal purposes," leading to the recommendation for possible blocking.
The criticism: Experts from the queer community, speaking to Decode’s Hera Rizwan, criticised the order, calling it biased and failing to address deeper socio-cultural issues. They argued that the app itself isn't the problem, but rather the misuse by some individuals.
Kolkata Doctor Rape-Murder: Viral Social Media Posts Defy Court Orders
🔖 Weeks after court's takedown orders, social media posts surrounding the Kolkata doctor rape-murder victim continue to go viral raising legal and ethical concerns as privacy laws clash with free speech.
BOOM found that a search of the victim’s name throws up 276,000 results on Facebook, 20,800 results on X, 295,000 results on Instagram, 58,800 results on TikTok (which is banned in India), 10,500 results on LinkedIn and 32 results on Pinterest.
“At first, it was posts seeking justice, but over time, we started linking these hashtags with unsavoury and worrisome content,” Siddharth P, co-founder, Rati Foundation told BOOM’s Ritika Jain.
Why Is Telegram And Its Founder Pavel Durov In Trouble?
🔖 Telegram founder Pavel Durov was arrested in Paris over the last weekend on allegations that criminal activities proliferate on his platform.
Telegram's large group capacities and encryption practices have made it prone to misuse, including the rapid spread of misinformation and illegal content.
Telegram has faced fines and temporary suspensions from countries like Germany and Brazil for inadequate content moderation and failure to cooperate with investigations.
Telegram is increasingly being used for illegal activities in India, such as distributing child sexual abuse material, manipulating stock prices, and aiding illegal sports betting.
Why is Telegram prone to misuse? Read Hera Rizwan’s explainer.
🚫 Fake News You Almost Fell For
🔍 A video of an angry mob thrashing an elderly man at a school in Badlapur, Thane, where a cleaning staff member of the school was accused of sexually assaulting two four-year-old girls, was shared with a false and communal claim that the accused is a Muslim man. Read 🔗 Anmol Alphonso & Nivedita Niranjankumar’s ↗️ fact-check.
🔍 Did former Reserve Bank of India Governor Dr. Y.V. Reddy, in his book "Advice and Dissent: My Life in Public Service," list businesspersons who “robbed the banks in connivance with congressmen"? Find out in 🔗 Nidhi Jacob’s ↗️ fact-check.
🔍 A 17-second graphic video allegedly showing dead children in a house was circulated with claims that Hindus in Bangladesh are being attacked and killed in their own homes. However, BOOM’s 🔗 Nidhi Jacob ↗️ found that the viral video was originally taken in the Rakhine State of Myanmar in June 2024 and is not from Bangladesh.
🅱️ Recommends
📖 This week's recommendation is: What psychological factors make people susceptible to believe and act on misinformation?
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