Haha! Rarely in the news do you get to see a headline that genuinely makes you smile. It’s either doom and gloom, weird sex news, or statistics from the latest sex study that has been done. This story is different.
Revenge porn is slowly becoming a crime across the world, and it is right that it should be! Posting a person’s private images or videos online without their permission because they pissed you off a bit? How is that even remotely okay?
For one revenge porn site owner, the tables have well and truly turned after his request to have his image removed from sites talking about his crime was denied by Google. Now he is at the mercy of the internet… and the internet is not kind.
Revenge porn website
Craig Brittain, a 28 year old living in America, started a revenge porn website where you could “submit social nudes anonymously”. You could submit the nudes anonymously, but you could also include information that would link to the person’s mobile number and social media site.
Why the hell someone would do that, I don’t know. What is worse is that Brittain made money from the poor victims on the site.
In order to have the images removed from the site, it has been said that victims would be charged up to $500 (£322) for this “privilege”. Yes, they would actually be charged to have their own images, which were posted without permission, taken down!
There are a lot of words I can think of to describe this guy, and one of them ends in the word “hole”!
The crime
Law changes in America meant that his website was illegal, and so it wasn’t long until the website was banned. It was ceased from operating by America’s Federal Trade Commission, and he then faced some severe charges for what happened.
He has since apologised for his crimes, writing the following statement on his website:
“I made a series of poor decisions, then tried to rationalise them, and made it even worse. I am sorry for the damage that I caused to everyone that ended up on my website. I am making amends at every opportunity. I ask for your forgiveness. What I did was wrong.”
As you might imagine, this wasn’t enough. People still wanted him to pay for what he did, and finally he is.
Begs for images to be removed
In a fantastic turn of events, Brittain has now gone to Google to ask that they remove links to any stories about his past. His reasoning? They contain “unauthorised photos” of him. Oh the irony!
He has attempted to invoke copyright law, stating that his permission was not received for those images and that they should be removed. He has done this multiple times now, trying to use the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA) to get Google on his side.
Hardly surprisingly, they have said no.
Apparently, if you were to look at America’s first amendment principles, there is absolutely no valid legal grounds to remove the images. Now that is what I call a result!
Does he deserve it?
It seems completely ridiculous that he would expect Google to remove his images because he didn’t give his permission when the site he started did exactly the same.
What did he expect to happen? Did he really think they would be removed just like that?
I’m glad that his image is still all over Google next to the words “revenge porn site shut down”. He has gotten a taste of his own medicine. As far as I am concerned, he deserves it. You cannot do something as disgusting as that and hope to walk away Scott-free.
What do you think? Should Google remove his images? Is his apology enough to make up for what happened to all of those people?
Personally, I don’t think it is. “Sorry” doesn’t make up for something like that. This is just another lesson on why you should be careful about who you trust. Do you agree? Pay a visit to the Escort Scotland forum and join the debate over there, or leave your thoughts in the comment box below.
Since then she has gained a fine reputation with her blogs on sex advice, sexual health and amusing news stories from around the globe. She is also a campaigner for the rights of sex workers from all over the world.
In her spare time, Lara keeps herself active by going running, and is something of a film buff. She also loves to go travelling.
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