South Korea shuts down over 60 sites hosting illegal sexual exploitation content

In April, the gender equality ministry, the Korea Media and Communications Commission and the National Police Agency formed a task force to combat digital sex crimes. This year the police took down 66 websites that hosted sexually exploitative material and captured 32 site operators, far exceeding the six sites closed last year. Authorities remotely deleted illegal footage on 16 of those sites and seized roughly 2.7 billion won in criminal proceeds.

The total number of publicly accessible illegal sites dropped from 6,683 to 4,736. The crackdown also targeted 236 illegal gambling sites suspected of funding the exploitation sites, resulting in the arrest of 3,663 individuals and the seizure of 176 billion won. The effort underscores a broader push to curb online sexual exploitation and its financing networks.