Hunan county fights back against forged sex photos

Businessmen fed up with blackmailing attempts

Reading Time:2 minutes

A truck touring Lufeng village in Shuangfeng with slogans against extortion (Photo: SCMP pictures)

Published: 12:55pm, 26 Mar 2013Updated: 2:30pm, 26 Mar 2013

A rural county in Hunan has declared a “people’s war” on photo-shopped sex photos - which have frequently been used to humiliate and blackmail local businessmen and bureaucrats.

Banners with slogans such as: “resolutely fight extortion with of photo-shopped obscene pictures, create a positive image for Shuangfeng County” are being spread throughout the county. They are calling for a "people's war" against blackmailers, according to photos circulating on Weibo.

The local government in Lufeng village had a truck tour of the village with loudspeakers and banners saying: "Hard work leads to riches and honour, extortion is shameful!"

Since last year, Shuangfeng county handled at least 127 cases of blackmail with forged and incriminating photos. They arrested 37 people, the Beijing News said. The county has a long tradition of photoshop craftsmanship, the Beijing-based daily noted. A decade ago, Shuangfeng was known as “the hometown of fake identity cards.”

"Many people in Shuangfeng are making money this way," a resident told Hunan Television. "Blackmail is just a quick and easy way to make money."

The crackdown started on February 19, when the head of the local Public Security Office lectured subordinate officials about its “thorough battle” against forged sex photos.