Boy meets girl. They fall in love. They share some intimate moments. Then for whatever reason it's over. Then boy starts blackmailing girl with photos of them being intimate or her naked. Or shares the photos with friends and co-workers. Or her family. Girl is distraught. Or, man is rejected by woman. Man decides to morph photos of her and put it up on social media. Maybe he creates a fake profile and claims she is a prostitute. The woman never finds out until people start calling and asking. She is embarrassed, horrified and distressed.
The internet has empowered millions but it has also become a tool for perpetrating gender-based violence. While cases of the sort detailed here are sometimes referred to as "revenge porn", the more accurate term would be online sexual abuse. Unlike other countries that had to enact special laws to deal with these crimes, the IT Act of 2000 covers them, experts agree. Where India has a problem however is in dealing with the aftermath. The problem of online sexual abuse is, the impact is long term. The internet is forever. And images shared online are difficult to track and take down. The victim has to live with the reality of continued victimisation. While internet giants have vowed to be supportive to the victims, the onus is still on the victim to request a image be taken down and the response is not always positive. So what can we do? Authorities have issued advisories telling women not to allow such pictures to be taken. Apart from only applying to one sort of violence, it again looks to police the victim's behaviour rather than address the offender's.
Instead, the root of such behaviours must be addressed as a kind of misogyny. Gender sensitisation must be part of the education system and consent, a significant part of it. Similarly, safe internet use must also be made part of curricula. This has to deal with understanding how the internet works, how to use technology safely and the options available when one falls victim to any kind of crime online.