Banned a Calvin Klein X Jeans ad

When does sexy become scary?

That's the question being raised by Australia's Advertising Standards Bureau, which has banned a Calvin Klein X Jeans ad on the grounds that it suggests rape, the Herald Sun reports.

The ad, which features supermodel Lara Stone and three men in various states of undress, had received more than 50 complaints as well as criticism from women's advocates who claimed it promoted gang rape and violence, according to the paper.

Calling the campaign "highly sexualized and clearly suggestive of sexual behavior," the group has reportedly ordered the removal of three Calvin Klein billboards.

"The Board considered that whilst the act depicted could be consensual, the overall impact and most likely takeout is that the scene is suggestive of violence and rape," the case report said.

"The Board considered that the image was demeaning to women by suggesting that she is a plaything of these men.

"It also demeans men by implying sexualized violence against women."

Clinical psychologist and sex abuse worker Alison Grundy told the Herald Sun that the ad was "clearly intimating" gang rape.

"If we continue to subject future generations of young men to great barrages of aggressive, misogynist, oversexualized, and violent imagery in pornography, movies, computer games, and advertising, we will continue to see the rates of sexual violence against women and children that continue unabated today. Or worse," she told the paper.

The brand is no stranger to censorship having produced numerous controversial and provocative ads over the years. Most recent culprits include an ad depicting a female model in a passionate clinch with three males, as well as a TV spot that was deemed too racy for American audiences.

Do you agree with the ruling? Is the ad too explicit? Or are they overreacting?