New Trends in the Modern Sex Industry and Its Criminological Risks

The paper presents an original analysis of the state of the modern sex industry as the largest shadow segment of the Russian economy. The relevance of the study consists in identifying and describing new criminal marketing schemes to maintain the demand for sexual services, which, among other things, contribute to an increase in the rates of sexual exploitation and serious crimes against the individual. The subject of this research is the sex industry as a social phenomenon; its purpose is to describe new trends in its functioning. Based on foreign and Russian criminological sources, the author developed the sex industry concept, identified its structure, and classified the forms of sexual activity and subjects. The novelty of the study is determined by the fact that for the first time the author gives a criminological characteristic of new directions in the development of the sex industry as an economically significant segment of the shadow market. In this regard, criminological risks of deviant sexual behavior are predicted, the development of which can lead to an outbreak of latent criminal violence, fraudulent activities, etc. Based on predictive estimates, in order to reduce the consequences of the massive use of Internet platforms that facilitate virtual transactions for the sale of virginity, sexual services and child pornography, their creators and administrators should be brought to administrative responsibility. In practical terms, the results of the study include proposals on criminal law criteria for distinguishing between these offenses and the argumentation of qualification decisions.