With millions of people stuck at home during the Covid-19 pandemic, many have turned to erotic online services to get through the lockdown. Adult cam models, also known as “cam girls,” are a booming sector of the gray market. DW spoke to several of them, who use pseudonyms and virtual private networks to mask their identities.
A few months ago, a Nizhny Novgorod woman named Alice set up a studio to offer streamed sex on the internet. She and three friends recruited new customers by promoting their videos on platforms like PornHub and OnlyFans. Alice says her earnings were around $2,000 a month and she worked close to 40 hours a week.
But the model business has not been without its risks. A recent Supreme Court ruling branded cam girls pornographers and led to a spike in prosecutions under Russia’s strict laws on distribution of pornography. In the case of Matvey Volodin, a gay man who helmed a popular Telegram channel called USSRboy, prosecutors charged him for posting “sexual scenes,” even though his content was a curious mix of pornography and pro-Putin political musings.
In many ways, Volodin’s story is a microcosm of the challenges facing a webcam industry that relies on young, attractive women to lure in viewers and profit from their attentions. As a result, the models often find themselves under threat from authorities and rivals alike.
The cam girl business has attracted a large number of women from Russia. It offers a quick way to make money and offers more freedom than a regular job. For a new model, starting earnings on specialized sites are typically between 100,000 rubles and 1 million rubles ($2,495 to $6,800).
This is not only much higher than the average monthly salary in Russia but also significantly above the minimum wage. But many models say the appeal is not just financial. “A cam girl gives you a feeling of autonomy,” psychotherapist Gennady Averyanov told DW. “You don’t have to adjust to a boss, you don’t have to deal with colleagues.”
But the industry is not without its dangers. For one, sexual assaults are not uncommon and can be hard to report. Another concern is that some models become predatory, preying on their customers to steal their credit card information or other personal details.
In addition, there is the risk of cyber criminals taking over people’s cameras and microphones, potentially spying on them in their homes. Principal security researcher at Kaspersky Lab David Emm said his company had seen an increase in attacks targeting people’s mobile devices, and most are unaware of how easy it is to hijack the camera or microphone.
With all these concerns, the future of the Russian camgirl industry looks bleak, at least for now. But some women are still determined to survive the onslaught and continue to offer erotic services on the web. And if they keep up their good work, they may yet see better days.