20 September 2024 | 16:51

Criminal case against the top managers of the website providing sexual services was closed

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Tengrinews.kz - The criminal case against the top managers of the notoriously known website Kyzdar.net has been closed, the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported.

Kyzdar.net - site of prostitutes of Kazakhstan.

Last spring, police detained 11 top managers of the site, who facilitated the posting of profiles of individuals offering intimate services for money.

"The pre-trial investigation under Article 309 of the Criminal Code regarding the organization of brothels for prostitution was closed due to gaps in legislation. The investigative authorities did not find definitions for terms such as 'online pimping' and 'advertising prostitution' in the article, which complicated the case," the Ministry of Internal Affairs stated in response to an official request from Tengrinews.kz.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs noted that the issue of online pimping is relevant not only in Kazakhstan but also in other countries, as many crimes occur over the internet. Police referred to the attempt to suppress the activities of such websites in Kazakhstan as a "precedent fact."

"Taking into account existing practices, amendments to the Criminal Code came into effect on September 5. Now it is possible to hold accountable those who run brothels for prostitution and pimping, including online activities such as advertising via the internet. Stricter penalties are provided for these offenses," the police clarified.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that they will continue working to block websites with illegal content, including Kyzdar.net. Despite these efforts, the site remains operational as it is hosted on American servers and quickly changes its domain name after each block, allowing it to remain accessible.

"For example, today the link "Kyzdar.net" is blocked, but tomorrow links like "Kyzdar2.net", "Kyzdar4.net", and so on are already functioning," the ministry explained.

Cybersecurity, IT, and marketing expert Evgeny Pitolin commented on the situation, noting that blocking a domain, especially if the hosting is abroad, will not yield significant results. He also emphasized that the content of such websites is assessed differently in various countries. For instance, in the USA and Europe, commercial sex is legal, so local authorities approach this issue differently.

"Acting solely within the legal framework is ineffective. It is necessary to find a balance between technical solutions and legitimate methods that allow blocking such sites at the level of backbone and local internet providers," Pitolin added.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the top managers of the website had a turnover of over 8 billion tenge, which amounts to more than 2 billion annually. However, the Ministry did not provide data on monthly sums. The agency clarified that transactions on the site are conducted in cryptocurrency through an automated online payment system, and efforts to determine these amounts are ongoing.

The Ministry is unaware of how many people visit the resource but warns that, under the new amendments, clients of sex workers may face criminal liability. Article 122 of the Criminal Code has introduced penalties for obtaining prostitution services from minors, which could lead to imprisonment for a term of 3 to 6 years, along with a lifetime ban on holding certain positions.

Previously, Kazakhstan has officially implemented amendments to the Criminal Code that introduce penalties for providing sexual services in "real-time via the internet," commonly referred to as webcam prostitution.