By Irfan Iqbal Gheta
Smartphone makers are constantly pushing boundaries—especially when it comes to cameras. Today’s flagship devices offer DSLR- or mirrorless-like capabilities at a fraction of the size and cost.
Is that a good thing? Absolutely. You no longer need to carry bulky camera gear. A powerful, multi-focal lens camera now fits right in your pocket. Just point and shoot.
But not everything is as rosy as it seems. With convenience comes complexity. And with power—responsibility.
The disturbing reality is that these advanced cameras, available to anyone with a smartphone, are increasingly being misused. Take a glance at any urban newspaper in India. Time and again, you’ll find headlines about young men—mostly in their twenties—secretly taking photographs of unsuspecting women in public spaces like streets, buses, or metros. These images often land on anonymous social media accounts, shared without consent to gain attention and followers.
Isn’t that horrifying? What kind of privacy invasion is this? What level of voyeurism are we normalizing? Do women really have to endure the ever-present male gaze everywhere they go? And more importantly—does anyone with a smartphone camera have the right to capture a woman’s image without her knowledge or consent?
Worse still, these images aren’t just taken—they’re shared. Uploaded to Facebook, Instagram, or other platforms, they become fodder for public consumption and online commentary. This makes the act not just invasive, but actively harmful.
Thankfully, such offenses are increasingly reported—often by victims’ friends or family—and the police are taking action. Accounts get suspended. Offenders are arrested. There is zero tolerance, and rightly so. But the real question is: Why is this happening in the first place?
More troubling is the fact that it’s not just the uneducated or misinformed. In a recent case, a highly educated software engineer working for a global tech company in India’s Silicon Valley was caught secretly filming his female colleagues at the office. He was immediately fired and handed over to the police.
Imagine the fallout—not just legal, but social. The shame, the disgrace for him and his family. And yet, such cases continue to emerge.
What we urgently need is education—not just punishment after the fact. We must begin teaching smartphone etiquette, digital ethics, and concepts like consent, privacy, and personal boundaries at the school level. Our children must be taught that taking someone’s picture without their knowledge or permission is not just unethical—it’s illegal.
Just because someone attractive is sitting nearby doesn’t give us the right to take their picture. And certainly not in a way that objectifies or violates their privacy.
Think before you click. Because what’s at stake isn’t just a photograph—it’s someone’s dignity, your character, and potentially your entire future.
Resist the urge. Respect privacy. Show restraint.
