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> “Virtually every tool can be used for good or for evil, and that is especially true of communication tools, due to their innate flexibility,” Leif K-Brooks, O
by spondylosaurus 3y ago
> “Virtually every tool can be used for good or for evil, and that is especially true of communication tools, due to their innate flexibility,” Leif K-Brooks, Omegle’s founder, wrote in a note announcing the site’s end. “The telephone can be used to wish your grandmother ‘happy birthday’, but it can also be used to call in a bomb threat. There can be no honest accounting of Omegle without acknowledging that some people misused it, including to commit unspeakably heinous crimes.” K-Brooks’ note did not mention the settlement in his statement, but blamed the closure of Omegle on unspecified “attacks” against communication services.
> There’s a flaw in K-Brooks’ argument: The telephone doesn’t connect children and teens directly to sexual predators with the click of a button. Omegle’s model allowed sexual predators to sign on and click through a roulette of people, continuously jumping from one to another until they were face-to-face with who they were looking for.
Yesterday's discussion about K-Brooks' statement: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38199355 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38199355
- Teever 3y ago> There’s a flaw in K-Brooks’ argument: The telephone doesn’t connect children and teens directly to sexual predators with the click of a button. Omegle’s model allowed sexual predators to sign on and click through a roulette of people, continuously jumping from one to another until they were face-to-face with who they were looking for. I used to answer the phone as a child and talk to complete strangers.
- hfjjbf 3y agoYes, but did they pull their dicks out or ask you to undress? Telephone just isn’t a valid metaphor here.
- whatshisface 3y agoI'm wondering how long it's going to be before someone sues a city for public indecency committed at a street intersection. After all, public spaces connect you instantly with strangers who only have to show up.
- Spivak 3y agoI mean that's not a totally unrealistic situation, if there was a city that was plagued such behavior and the police/justice system as a whole weren't able to tamp it down to the point where it was commonplace when going out I bet someone would sue the city to do something about it.
- tails4e 3y agoActually a sexual predator did call me when I was primary school. Back then when the phone rang as the principal was also a teacher, a student would run out to answer the phone. One day it was my turn. I answerd and asked politey how I could help. The person on the other end, claimed he was a doctor, and proceeded to ask increasingly personal and sexual questions to 10 year old me, and I didn't know what to do, I wasnt savvy enough to hang up, so went along with it, and eventually said if get the pricipal. So yes the phone can be used to abuse. Sick fucks will find a way.
- superkuh 3y agoYeah, especially since the vast majority (90%) of sexual abuse is done by people well known to the family of the abused (most likely the family itself). It's really hard to do forced physical sexual abuse over the internet when all that has to happen to end the interaction is a click.
- anigbrowl 3y agoConsent isn't a defense to statutory rape, and it doesn't work here for the same reason.
- Teever 3y agoThe piece I quoted placed emphasis on sexual predators being able to communicate over the medium, not public displays of nudity, so I think the comparison to the telephone is relevant. But that's besides the point. If you don't want your kids to see peoples dicks on the internet than exhibit better control over your kids access to the internet. It's not up to me and the rest of society to police your kids. I don't want to lose an internet that has charming sites like Omegle because people can't be bothered to take care of their kids.
- eberg 3y agoYes, in fact, the telephone has been used to ask people to undress. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strip_search_phone_call_scam https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strip_search_phone_call_scam
- johnnyanmac 3y agoThey can. Do people not remember phone sex? Very understandable if you don't want to recall that, but if you are going to compare abuse in another medium you better know the history.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]