Virtual sex is sexual activity where two or more people gather together via some form of communications equipment to arouse each other by transmitting sexually explicit messages. Virtual sex describes the phenomenon, no matter the communications equipment used.
These terms and practices continuously evolve as technologies and methods of communication change.
Increases in Internet connectivity, bandwidth availability, and the proliferation of webcams have also had implications for virtual sex enthusiasts. It's increasingly common for these activities to include the exchange of pictures or motion video. There are companies which allow paying customers to actually watch people have live sex or masturbate and at the same time allow themselves to be watched as well. Recently devices have been introduced and marketed to allow remote controlled stimulation.
Consent
An important part of partaking in virtual sex, or sexual acts, would be consent. The ethics of sexting are already being established by young people for whom consent figures as a critical concept. Distinctions between positive and negative experiences of sexting are mostly dependent on whether consent was given to make and share the images. As of 2015, it is illegal for any person's under the age of 18 to consent to any form of virtual sex (only if nude pictures are sent ), because images of minors are considered child pornography.