디지털성범죄에 있어서의 위장수사 내지 비밀수사를 둘러싼 쟁점에 대한 고찰

Due to the so-called ‘Nth Room’ incident, the necessity of an undercover investigation was actively discussed, and related provisions were newly established in the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth against Sex Offenses. Accordingly, the issue of undercover investigation seems to have ended, but discussions on the undercover investigation are still ongoing. In particular, amid recent discussions on expanding the scope of undercover investigations, including drug investigations, it is necessary to review various issues that take place during the undercover investigation process before discussing the expansion of the system. This is because undercover investigations have various situations and forms that make it difficult to uniformly define their characteristics. There may be cases in which secret investigations are aimed at preventing crimes and collecting evidence for a criminal prosecution, the latter of which can be mostly seen as investigations. If an undercover investigation has the nature of a compulsory investigation, it cannot be allowed without a legal basis, and the issue of the illegality of the investigation discussed in the entrapment investigation may be raised. In the process of undercover investigation under the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth against Sex Offenses, the issue of the admissibility of evidence collected should be judged according to the same principle. In addition, it is necessary to prevent secondary damage by using deepfake images during the investigation process.