It catapulted Kim Kardashian to instant stardom, and many celebrities like Paris Hilton and Pamela Anderson followed suit.

Sex tapes may have been taboo before these scandals, but they brought instant fame and fortune to these celebrities.

However, there is a flip side: making a sex tape has been known to land people in hot water. Many will remember the Joost van der Westhuizen scandal, when the alleged sex tape that surfaced not only got tongues wagging, but possibly cost him his marriage and career.

And who can forget the prison warder and and police officer whose sex tape filmed while on duty a few of years ago cost them both their jobs.

Is making a sex tape with your lover a good idea, or do the cons outweigh the pros? Could making sex tapes re-ignite the passion in the bedroom? Are they a vain indulgence?

First, lets delve into why people make sex tapes in the first place.

According to the people Sowetan spoke to, sex tapes can either be fun and sexy, or downright embarrassing.

These are their anecdotes:

I enjoy watching myself on tape

"It is the best aphrodisiac in the world," says Thabang Modise*, a resident of Jabulani in Soweto.

"I get a kick out of watching myself perform and having a bird's-eye view can be liberating because you can know which areas need improvement," he chuckled.

Asked about the potential embarrassment of the footage falling in the wrong hands, Modise is quick to jump in: "If you are going to make a sex tape, it's your responsibility to ensure it's stored in a secure place.

"My tapes are on my laptop, and I have a password.

Anyone who gets their hands on them would not only have violated my trust, but my privacy as well . I can actually sue them if my private home movies become public," he says.

The shocker is that Modise admitted to not always disclosing to his partners when he is recording. His actions directly violate the rights of his lover, but he is smug enough to say that so far he hasn't been caught.

Sex therapist Dr Elna McIntosh warns against this as she says it can land you in jail.

"Filming someone without their consent constitutes stalking. It falls under the umbrella of peeping toms and an invasion of privacy and, if discovered, can have serious charges brought up against you. Always get your partner's consent," she says.

I resent him having something on me

Thokozile Mathebula*, a 28-year-old student nurse from Bramfischer, says she didn't have any qualms about making a tape with her ex-lover when they were still together, but hates how he shows it off to his friends.

"It was just a fun, naughty moment when we decided to record me [giving] him oral sex.

"We both had the footage on our phones, but I hated the way he would always show his friends how much of 'the man' he was. It was really embarrassing to have his friends ogle me like they wanted me to do the same to them," she says. This nasty situation led to Mathebula calling off the relationship, but she says she hates the fact that her ex can do anything he wishes with their private material.

"I've asked him to delete it, but he says it's his phone and I can't dictate what gets discarded.

"I'm just scared of who he might show it to because I'm entering a professional environment now and I wouldn't want something that I did as a naive girl to haunt me."

*Not their real names*