Welcome back to our discussion about revenge porn, and how the laws governing this crime can impact you in Michigan. In the previous two installments we looked at exactly what revenge porn is, and whether or not criminalizing it violates Fourth Amendment rights. Moving on, we are looking at the efforts made by different organizations and branches of government to eradicate it.
One of the greatest forums for revenge porn, besides websites that are dedicated specifically to hosting it, is social media. That’s why Facebook has decided to take action, where possible, against its users posting revenge pornography.
There is currently no artificial intelligence (AI) that can accurately identify an image as non-consensual pornography. However, Facebook says that they now use a pattern recognition AI, which functions as a form of content-based retrieval, or associative memory, that can weed out any images that the user labels as revenge pornography. This way they can block the spreading and dissemination of these images and also warn users about the problem. In order to be truly effective, however, it does require that the victim report the problem to Facebook first.
Many people have argued against the use of AI to detect these images. After all, AI can’t understand context while a human operator can. The reason, however, has nothing to do with operator error, and everything to do with scale. Hundreds of thousands of pictures are posted to Facebook every day, which would be impossible for human operators to wade through. AI is currently the only way, despite being imperfect, to make any headway.
Facebook isn’t the only place that you can no longer post compromising pictures of your ex after a breakup. Revenge porn is also officially illegal under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the US Marines and Navy regulations. After the private Facebook page ‘Marines United’ was discovered and reported by The War Horse for containing non-consensual pornography, it came under investigation.
Marines United was shut down for sexually harassing female members of the Navy and Marines.
More than two dozen female service members, many of whom are on active duty, had their pictures posted on the page along with their full name, rank and military duty station. Many of the pictures showed the women in the nude, and included many lewd comments suggesting degrading and even violent sexual assaults.
In the wake of this revelation, the photo linking accounts were shut down and the Marines who took the pictures were discharged from active duty. In addition, the employer of the Marine veteran who initially posted the Google Drive link on Marines United was fired from his position as a government subcontractor in the U.S. However, for all of these efforts, the problems appears to be ongoing here in Michigan as well as throughout the world.
It is important to be aware of these facts because, if nothing else, you should know that there may be far reaching decisions for impulsive choices. Being angry with someone for hurting you is natural. Wanting revenge for the pain they caused is a normal, if unhealthy response. But there is a difference between wanting something, and actually working to get it.
Additionally, if the person you are posting pictures of is not connected to you, and you simply want to share something that you like with others whom you think will also like it, keep in mind what the law says about non-consensual pornography. It may seem harmless you in the moment, or nothing more than “guys being guys”, but the law is very clear. It would be tragic to end up in jail for months, leaving behind ruined relationships with loved ones and a lost job, all for a few naked pictures.
If however, you already made the mistake of letting your anger get the better of you in the wake of a failed relationship, we are here to help. If your judgement slipped and you shared pictures that weren’t yours to share, you are going to need the help of a highly skilled defense attorney with years of experience handling sex crime allegations. Call us at 866 766 5245 today. We can help you through this difficult time.