Chapter 33 Quiz: Technology and Harm — Catfishing, Revenge Porn, and Algorithmic Discrimination
Instructions: Select the best answer for each question.
1. Non-consensual intimate image sharing (NCII) is preferred over the term "revenge porn" by researchers and advocates primarily because:
a) "Revenge porn" overstates the severity of the harm b) The material is not always shared as revenge, and is not always pornographic — "NCII" more accurately describes the harm c) "Revenge porn" implies criminal intent, which is difficult to prove d) The term "porn" carries legal protections that complicate prosecution
Answer: b
2. Research by Henry, Flynn, and Powell (2020) on NCII victims found that:
a) Most NCII victims experience minimal long-term psychological harm b) Victims primarily reported financial loss as the most severe consequence c) Victims described the experience using language closely mapping onto research on sexual assault, including loss of control and ongoing exposure d) Victims were most concerned about reputational damage in professional settings
Answer: c
3. A major limitation of existing NCII laws in addressing deepfake intimate imagery is:
a) Deepfakes are technically impossible to create at sufficient quality to be harmful b) Many NCII laws were written before deepfakes were technically feasible and contain language requiring the image to be "of" the victim, which prosecutors argue may not cover synthetic imagery c) Deepfake legislation requires international treaty agreement before it can be enacted at the state level d) NCII laws uniformly exempt synthetic imagery from coverage
Answer: b
4. In the typical romance scam sequence, what does the chapter identify as the psychological mechanism that makes scams effective?
a) Victims are disproportionately low-intelligence individuals who cannot identify deception b) Scammers exploit legitimate human needs for connection and belonging in people experiencing loneliness, recent loss, or life transitions c) Romance scams work only against elderly victims with cognitive impairment d) The primary mechanism is financial — scammers target people with documented high income
Answer: b
5. FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) data on romance scam victims finds that:
a) The youngest adult age group (18–29) reports the highest median individual losses b) Romance scam losses are uniformly distributed across age groups c) Adults over fifty, and particularly adults over seventy, report the highest median individual losses d) Romance scams disproportionately target college-educated professionals aged 30–50
Answer: c
6. The chapter describes three approaches to algorithmic racial bias in dating apps. Which best characterizes the "algorithmic correction" approach?
a) Showing users data about their own racial swiping patterns and allowing them to reflect b) Optimizing the algorithm purely for engagement, letting user preferences drive what is shown c) Adjusting the recommendation algorithm to detect and reduce systematic demographic disparities in who is shown to whom d) Eliminating racial and ethnic data from the algorithm entirely to achieve a "colorblind" matching system
Answer: c
7. "Stalkerware," as discussed in the chapter, refers to:
a) Legal parental monitoring applications used with a child's knowledge b) Applications designed to hide themselves on a device while secretly transmitting the owner's communications and location to a third party c) Social media monitoring services used by law enforcement to track stalking suspects d) GPS tracking applications that are disclosed to all parties using the device
Answer: b
8. The ethically relevant distinction between consensual location-sharing apps (like Find My Friends) and stalkerware is:
a) Consensual apps are free; stalkerware requires a subscription b) Consensual apps are only used between parents and minor children c) Consensual sharing is mutual and visible to both parties, who can both turn it off; stalkerware is invisible and one-directional d) Consensual apps do not transmit real-time location; stalkerware updates every thirty seconds
Answer: c
9. Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act is relevant to technology-facilitated intimate harm because:
a) It requires platforms to actively monitor user-uploaded content for NCII b) It provides platforms with protection from liability for user-uploaded content, historically reducing platforms' incentives to remove NCII promptly c) It created the first federal criminal penalty for non-consensual image sharing d) It mandates that platforms report NCII to law enforcement within 24 hours
Answer: b
10. Research on grooming behavior in cases of digital predation of minors finds which counterintuitive pattern?
a) Most online predators are complete strangers who have no prior contact with victims b) Most predators deceive victims about their age and identity throughout the grooming process c) Contrary to popular panic, most online predators do not fully deceive victims about their adult status — adolescent victims often know they are in contact with an older person d) Online predation affects boys and girls at statistically identical rates
Answer: c
11. The chapter's description of the Swipe Right Dataset finding on algorithmic suppression argues primarily that:
a) Dating app algorithms are deliberately programmed to discriminate against users of color b) Optimization for engagement, in a user base whose preferences encode racial hierarchy, produces racial amplification as an emergent outcome — not through malicious intent but through design choices divorced from ethical analysis c) Dating apps should be prohibited from using recommendation algorithms entirely d) The pattern of differential satisfaction scores is caused by users of color having lower-quality profiles on average
Answer: b
12. The Stop NCII initiative addresses the spread of non-consensual intimate images through:
a) Legal prosecution of NCII perpetrators across jurisdictions b) Hash-matching technology that allows victims to create digital fingerprints of images, which are then used to block re-upload across participating platforms c) A victim compensation fund paid for by platform advertising revenues d) AI-based detection of NCII uploaded to platforms, without requiring victim involvement
Answer: b