Aussie dads fight back against revenge porn and sexting by making safe app for sharing nude photos
TWO Aussie dads raising young girls were horrified by the dangerous world of revenge porn and sexting. So they’ve come up with a safe — but cheeky — solution.
TWO Australian dads horrified by revenge porn have invented an app they hope will help couples safely send each other racy photos.
The photo-sharing service named HotShots is designed so pictures can’t be screenshot, saved or forwarded, and the app’s servers are wiped daily to avoid being targeted by hackers.
And, like many bright ideas, this one was brewed over beers.
Co-creators Shane Bell and Derek Hayes were sharing a couple of knock-off lagers at the Perth pub they work at, and discussing their fears about the prevalence of sexting and the risky environment their children — aged 2 to 14 — were growing into.
But instead of just moaning about it, they decided to work on a solution.
The friends founded Sour Gun Entertainment in July and sought the expertise of tech developers to marry up with their own digital skills in graphic design and innovation.
After months of fine-tuning the software, the HotShots app can now be downloaded free by Android users.
They hope an Apple version will be ready next month.
If a user wants to send an image in the app, they take a picture and select a recipient.
The receiver briefly sees a distorted version and can only view the clear image if they answer correctly a secret question posed by the sender.
Once seen, it is deleted forever.
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Bell said the app aimed to “keep people safe”.
Cyber safety experts, however, continue to urge people to avoid sending nudes.
Curtin University clinical fellow Amanda Lambros said HotShots appeared safer than many available apps — including Snapchat — but warned the web was complex and the only truly hack-proof way of revealing yourself to somebody was in the bedroom.
Another expert, Leonie Smith, said there was still nothing to stop somebody from using a separate device to take a photo of the image shown on their phone screen.
Sexting can be illegal in most states when involving people aged under 18.
In Victoria, it is a crime to share explicit images without consent.
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Bell said the app may seem controversial, but said they were pragmatic fathers who realised that realistically, sexting wasn’t going anywhere.
“It’s always something that has happened and always will happen, and if we can make it safe for people, then that’s more power to them,” Bell said.
“We think this app is something that could help solve a big issue.”
He said while he believed his app was more secure option, he didn’t claim it to be impenetrable and stood ready take feedback for future tweaks.
“We are committed to this and will try and make it safer,” he said.
Twitter: @sopphie
sophie.aubrey@news.com.au
Originally published as Aussie dads fight back against revenge porn and sexting by making safe app for sharing nude photos
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