B.J. Murphy, a transhumanist writer activist, wrote the article, "The Transhumanist Future of Sex (Crimes?)" in October 2014, appearing on The Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies website. In this article, Murphy referenced an August 31, 2014 incident when nearly 200 celebrities had their private images hacked and released for the entire world to see, including sexually explicit images and nudity. The celebs reacted strongly, calling it a "sex crime." Murphy asks the question, how do we define a "sex crime" in a world with continual advancements in technology? He suggests that future risks may materialize and that we should be ready to address these risks if and when they do.
https://ieet.org/index.php/IEET2/more/murphy20141023
The risks have materialized.
April 2015, another B.J. Murphy article, "The Legal Dilemma of Age Play in Virtual and Augmented Reality." (VR and AR) Murphy discusses VR and "Age Play," in which consenting adults play the roles of certain ages and perform both sexual and non-sexual fantasies. It includes adults role-playing as children. Is this a risk?
Then consider Sky News who did a report in 2007 on a virtual world known as "Second Life," and uncovered a pedophilia ring operating semi-covertly with a user-created park known as "Wonderland," where people were able to perform in virtual "Age Play" using both children and adult avatars for sexual purposes.
Who is really behind these avatars? Is there the possibility of those hiding behind both children and adult avatars underage children in reality? Murphy states this would raise 2 questions: If 2 avatars are having sex in a virtual world and 1 of those controlling an avatar is an underage child and the other is an adult, is this a clear act of pedophilia?
VR has grown in popularity, and there is no end in sight to "Age Play." Its is fair to say that pedophiles will take advantage of advanced technologies to help expand their reach towards underage victims.
AR is also here and also allows people to partake in sexual experiences with virtual avatars. With AR, the level of immersion is enhanced as it nearly mimics the physical act of sex with others. The difference is it will take place in the privacy of your home and anonymity will become even more secure. AR can also be used to help advance "Age Play" between consenting adults because you can teleport your avatar to wherever their consenting partner is located. Again, there is also the possibility that 1 of the avatars is being controlled by a child.
https://ieet.org/index.php/IEET2/print/10298
And, finally, we are left with a January 11, 2017 article by Simon Davies, a London-based freelance writer, "Does Virtual Reality Need a Moral Code?" He discusses the 2015 Linden Labs scandal where users had modified avatars to resemble children, creating their own cyber world of pedophilia.
https://tech.co/virtual-reality-need-moral-code-2017-01
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SoSpricyHotDog ago
I am not one to normalize this sick, sick behavior... but, similar to FPS/violent games, would it potentially help to diffuse the situation for these sick bastards? Or would the VR/AR angle simply get them closer to seeking out real victims? I honestly have no idea. If the VR aspect got them to stop hurting real children... fine. If it increased the likelihood... then, no, absolutely not.
The jury has been out on this topic for many years. (Whether games can dissuade deviant behavior, vs. creating it)
10391684? ago
repeated exposure to a stimulus, especially pleasurable ones, eventually desensitizes a person to the stimulus. a pedophile would maybe use VR in the absence of being able to molest real kids or perhaps out of fear of repercussions but i think it's safe to assume that in many cases this would only be effective for so long before they search out stronger stimuli. indulging in pedophilic VR fantasies or child porn also reinforces the neural pathways that seek out the forbidden stimuli.
i don't think it would be effective in deterring child abuse.
SoSpricyHotDog ago
Well, then, perhaps the CIA could leverage some of their tools to stop spying on normal citizens, and inject it into these sick Pedo AR/VR games, to catch these pricks.
10392313? ago
you think they could just like i dunno fucking listen to all the recorded conversations they have from our devices and hmmmm i dunno FIND THESE FUCKERS