Paid Subscribers of Sexual Exploitation in Room N “Can Also Be Punished as Accomplices in Sexual Violence”

On March 22, a Kyunghyang Shinmun reporter disguised as a subscriber of Room N concludes a KakaoTalk chat with a digital undertaker who claimed to delete Telegram activity logs.

hen Jo (25), who distributed videos sexually exploiting women in the Telegram “doctor’s room,” was arrested, many people advertised that they could delete Telegram activity logs. The public is now raising its voice demanding the government to disclose the personal information of Jo, the main culprit, and the members of “Room N.” Some experts believe the court will be able to apply specific articles to punish some members as accomplices in sexual violence.

■ “We Will Erase Your Activity Log”

On March 22, the Kyunghyang Shinmun, disguised as a member of Room N, contacted an operator of a KakaoTalk open chatroom who claimed he could delete any records of activities in Room N. The operator promoted himself as an expert with ten year’s experience in the industry. He replied, “If you send us your name, legal date of birth, phone number, and address, we will immediately begin work.”

When we expressed concerns of sharing personal information, he said, “If we don’t have the information, it is difficult to access the data, and impossible to delete it. We need to know the address to confirm your IP. Our firm deletes all personal information as soon as the program completes the task.” When we hinted at suspicions of fraud, the operator posted the URL of an IT security firm and said, “This is our website. Please take a look before you decide.” These are the so-called “digital undertakers.” This day, a search of KakaoTalk open chatrooms resulted in over a hundred such one-on-one chatrooms.

Lim Jong-in, a professor at the Graduate School of Information Security at Korea University said, “It is very foolish to give your personal information to a digital undertaker, for they can use the information to blackmail you,” and further elaborated, “The encryption technology used by Telegram can only be penetrated by top intelligence agencies like the National Security Agency in the U.S. It is very unlikely for a domestic firm to delete the log on the Telegram server using some personal information. Even if they succeed in deleting the log, the conversations and transaction records with subscribers still remain in Jo’s cellphone, so they can be punished.”

Digital undertakers claiming to delete evidence of Room N can also be punished. The legal circle believes that if companies receive money from false advertisements, they can be punished for fraud; if they actually delete criminal evidence, they can be punished for destroying evidence. Attorney Yi Eun-ui said, “If they delete conversations including important criminal activities of Room N subscribers, then we can consider charges of destroying evidence and fleeing.”

■ Can Subscribers Be Punished?

Jo received entrance fees of 200,000-1.5 million won from subscribers and distributed videos of sexual exploitation in a number of chatrooms. Sixteen of the 74 female victims were minors. For months, a joint committee in response to sexual exploitation on Telegram collected information on those who logged onto over sixty chatrooms, and their numbers surpassed 260,000. The Cyber Investigation Department at the National Police Agency captured 124 suspects who produced, distributed and possessed videos of sexual exploitation through Telegram, including Room N, and arrested eighteen of them as of March 20. The police are currently tracking Godgod, the operator who first opened Room N, with the help of tips and other information, such as IP and bank account records.

As of 9 p.m. this day, over two million people--the biggest number of supporters for a petition--signed a national petition on the Cheong Wa Dae website demanding the government to release the personal information of Jo. Over 1.3 million people also supported a petition demanding the personal information of all Room N members. The police are reviewing the release of Jo’s personal information only. Realistically, it is not likely for the personal information of all subscribers to be released. The release of personal information of suspects, whom the court has yet to determine guilty, is strictly restricted to mostly homicide. The police have never released the personal information of anyone in connection to the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes.

The police are investigating all subscribers who paid Jo and downloaded the videos. Up till now, the state has failed to properly punish people who have distributed or possessed contents sexually exploiting minors. According to the office of Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Nam In-soon, 3,439 people have been caught for producing and distributing pornography involving minors in 2015-2018, but only 479 cases (13.9%) were charged. Only 80 (2.3%) cases resulted in imprisonment.

The latest case has triggered views that we must treat subscribers not as simple observers, but as a group of accomplices in sexual violence. Voices demand proper punishment on those that pay and consume videos in which the female victims are sexually exploited.

Based on the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes, even if the victim voluntarily shot the video, a third person can be punished for up to five years in jail or a fine of up to 30 million won if he distributes the video without her consent. “Doctor” Jo lured subscribers to join in the crime by allowing them entry to his chatrooms on condition that they share videos of sexual exploitation. So if the subscribers shared videos or captured images of victims to enter the chatrooms, they can be punished for distributing such contents without consent. Experts believe the state should strengthen punishment even for mere possession of such content, when the sexually exploitative videos include minors. Seo Hye-jin, a lawyer said, “Authorities should aggressively conduct the investigation and analyze the purchase details of the subscribers to see if they were involved in possession or distribution.”

Some experts believe that if the state actively applies legal principles, the state can also punish the subscribers as Jo’s “accomplices.” Yi Eun-ui said, “Some subscribers of Room N demanded sexual violence against women, so the specific legal articles could be applied as with accomplices.”

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