Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.
Digital sex crimes by intimate partners increase share of total, report finds
Kim Seong-cheol, second from left, director general at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family’s safety and human rights policy division, speaks during a press briefing at Government Complex Seoul, Tuesday. Newsis
By Jung Min-ho
Korea sees overall decline in sexual violence, while secondary victimization remains high
Offenses involving digital sex crimes by current or former partners are making up a growing portion of sexual violence in Korea, a new government report showed Tuesday, although the country is experiencing an overall decline in several forms of sexual violence.
It also said victim-blaming and secondary victimization remain high.
The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family released the results of its comprehensive 2025 survey on sexual violence based on a nationwide study conducted every three years under the Sexual Violence Prevention and Victims Protection Act. The 2025 survey was conducted with 10,151 men and women aged 19 to 64.
Findings showed that lifetime victimization rates for several major offenses have fallen compared to the results of the 2022 survey. The lifetime prevalence of sexual violence involving means of communication — such as phones and online platforms — decreased from 9.8 percent to 7.6 percent, while sexual harassment fell from 3.9 percent to 2.4 percent and rape, including attempted rape, from 0.2 percent to 0.1 percent.
Behind the overall decline, however, the profile of perpetrators is shifting sharply toward intimate partners. Among female respondents who experienced crimes involving nonconsensual creation or distribution of sexually explicit videos and images, including fabricated ones, the proportion who identified a former partner as the perpetrator more than tripled from 13.8 percent in 2022 to 42.5 percent in 2025. The share reporting sexual harassment by a former partner also soared, from 5.6 percent to 14.6 percent.
Current partners also accounted for an expanding portion of digital sex offenses, with cases perpetrated by a boyfriend almost doubling from 10.3 percent to 18.1 percent, and cases involving spouses surged from 6 percent to 13.4 percent.
The report also highlights a persistent fear of sex crimes in everyday life, especially among women. More than half of women (53.1 percent) responded they feel afraid of sexual violence when walking alone late at night. Many said they feel fear when they are home alone, when a stranger like a delivery worker visits (40.4 percent) or when using taxis or public restrooms alone (39.4 percent). More than 20 percent also expressed anxiety about drug-facilitated sexual assault, unlawful filming and the distribution of illegal or fabricated sexually explicit images.
Meanwhile, the report found that victim-blaming attitudes and behaviors remain widespread. Nationwide, 38.7 percent of respondents said they believed that sexual violence occurs because of overly revealing clothing, while 27.2 percent said intoxicated victims also bear responsibility. More than a third, or 34.4 percent, said they believe many people falsely report sexual violence out of anger or for money or revenge.
Secondary victimization appears to be a significant barrier to reporting and recovery. Asked whether they experienced any form of secondary victimization after sexual violence, many victims said they were blamed or met with dismissive reactions, with 16 percent of women recalling being told that “talking about it will not help you.” Another 12.6 percent said they were told they had given “room” for the crime to be committed, while 11.2 percent said they were told the perpetrator was “just being friendly” and that they were “too sensitive.”
Reporting sexual violence and crime remains extremely rare in Korea. Overall, very few victims said they reported their experience to authorities, with just 2.8 percent of women and 0.7 percent of men who had experienced sexual violence saying they went to the police.
“Compared with 2022, we believe changes in the technological environment — such as the spread of generative artificial intelligence that makes it easier to produce fake sexually explicit images — have played a significant role,” Kim Seong-cheol, director general at the ministry’s safety and human rights policy division, told reporters.
To address dating violence, the ministry plans to push ahead with new legislation. A total of 16 related bills, including amendments to the Domestic Violence Punishment Act and the Stalking Punishment Act, are currently pending in the National Assembly, Kim added.
Minister Won Min-kyung also acknowledged that the rise in sexual violence within intimate relationships and public concern about secondary victimization as urgent issues, vowing to close legal and institutional blind spots in such crimes.