The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and police said Tuesday they would intensively crack down on sex crimes targeting vacationers at the country’s major beaches over the next three weeks.

Counseling booths will be set up until Aug. 11 at makeshift police stations near the beaches, including Gyeongpo Beach in Gangneung and Haeundae Beach in Busan, to receive reports and provide support to victims.

They also plan to distribute leaflets to raise awareness that clandestine photos of others is subject to punishment. 

Secretly taking photos of body parts of other people is a sex offense that carries a jail term of up to five years or a fine of up to 10 million won ($9,000).

South Korea has seen a surge in the number of sex crimes involving secret cameras in recent years. The number of cases increased from 517 in 2006 to 7,730 in 2015, according to prosecutors.

By Ock Hyun-ju (laeticia.ock@heraldcorp.com)