By Evridiki Fatolia,
According to a German investigation, thousands of males are taking part in chat rooms where they exchange ideas on how to rape and sexually abuse women. Up to 70,000 members of the groups, which are located on the instant messaging app Telegram, appear to be from a variety of nations and primarily speak with one another in English. In addition to sharing directions with others on how to do the same, users reported having abused women in their homes, including mothers, sisters, partners, and spouses. While some members of the chat groups posted live footage of the assaults, others also shared images. In one case, a German guy offered his wife to other users, claiming he would paralyze her.
Since its founding in 2013 by Russian software millionaire Pavel Durov, Telegram has been the preferred messaging app for criminals since it refuses to give any information to the government. The German broadcaster ARD and its STRG_F investigative team discovered that group members had been exchanging advice on how to put their partners to sleep. Posting links to internet stores, where sexual abusers may purchase sedatives masquerading as hair products was one example of this.Telegram insisted on taking action against these kinds of groups. “Telegram has a zero-tolerance policy towards misuse of its platform“, the statement read. Any users found engaging in such behavior will be barred right away.
While some groups were deactivated during ARD’s year-long inquiry, users frequently received links to new ones. German investigators claimed to have had some success in recent years persuading Telegram to release data related to investigations into content related to child sex abuse and terrorism. In August, Mr. Durov was taken into custody in France on suspicion of neglecting to stop the spread of illegal content. He has refuted the accusations. The software entrepreneur, who is currently under house arrest in Paris, then declared that his platform would take further action to combat “problematic content”. There have been appeals in Germany for the authorities to be granted further authority to track down the IP addresses of individuals acting anonymously, due to the prominence of child abuse information on applications like Telegram.
The information disclosed about these Telegram groups emphasizes how urgently international cooperation is needed to control online platforms and stop their abuse. However, such programs run the danger of failing in the absence of consistent worldwide enforcement. A larger issue in striking a balance between privacy and public safety is highlighted by the use of encrypted messaging apps to enable crimes similar to those discovered in this research. It is becoming increasingly clear that strong, enforceable policies are necessary as governments and organizations struggle with these challenges.
Reference
- Telegram ‘rape chat groups’ with up to 70,000 members uncovered. The Telegraph. Available here
