One of Australia's top police officers has suggested people could use a smartphone app to electronically record sexual consent.
Consent has been a tricky conversation over the past few years and there has been a massive campaign aimed at ensuring both parties agree to whatever they're about to do with each other.
There have been issues in the past with 'implied consent', which is essentially cracking on with the sexual deed because no one explicitly said 'no' or 'stop'.
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Police in New South Wales have also been noticing a rise in sexual assault cases, yet the conviction rate is still low.
But it is hoped a new smartphone app could be developed to sort out consent from the outset.
New South Wales Police Commissioner Mick Fuller reckons technology is the way forward with this issue and it would make their job much easier when pursuing potential criminal matters.
He told reporters: "There is no implied consent. It needs to be positive consent. How do we do that in this day and age? One option is with technology.
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"People say 'how unromantic is that'. But think of how many people are looking for friendship and love online - it's not as though technology and dating are foreign to us.
"The conversation around sex and consent seems to be anchored to the '50s and clearly it isn't working."
Commissioner Fuller said most Australians can't go to the pub, a restaurant or the movies without checking in due to the coronavirus pandemic. Each time we do that it's like signing a consent form.
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"You can't walk into a shop at the moment without scanning in. Two years ago I would have said 'you're mad, I'm not doing that'," he said.
He believes two people (or more) could sit down and sign their name and a waiver that states they're both of legal age and understand sexual consent.
It could work that the app then sends a request from one phone to the other, the user accepts and signs it, and then that data can be stored and used later if needed.
The first issue with this idea that comes to mind is that consent can change during sex.
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While two (or more) people might agree to have sex with each other, one party might change their minds in the middle of the act or be uncomfortable with something that is happening and not want to continue.
It would be difficult to get that experience documented in the proposed app.
Greg Barns, national criminal justice spokesman for the Australian Lawyers Alliance said: "It would be highly problematic and difficult to admit into evidence."
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Technology, Australia