TECH FIRMS FOCUS ON NUDITY RATHER THAN CONSENT, REPORT FINDS

Technology companies and authorities are prioritising the removal of nude imagery whilst overlooking questions of consent, according to a report by Chayn. The organisation warns that this approach fails to address the full scope of online abuse experienced by women. Chayn's findings suggest that current responses to image-based harm concentrate narrowly on nudity as the defining problem, rather than examining whether the images were shared with permission.

The report indicates that many platforms enforce policies centred on identifying and removing nude content, but lack mechanisms to establish whether subjects consented to their images being circulated. This distinction matters because non-consensual sharing of clothed photographs can constitute abuse, whilst consensual nude imagery may be removed under blanket policies that do not differentiate between willing and unwilling distribution. Chayn argues that focusing solely on nudity obscures the consent question that lies at the heart of image-based harm.

The findings carry implications for how technology companies design their reporting systems and moderation policies. Chayn's position suggests that authorities and platforms must reframe their approach to centre consent rather than nudity alone. The report calls for clearer distinctions in how platforms handle reported content, moving beyond automated responses that treat all nude imagery identically regardless of the circumstances of its creation and sharing.