Stay far away from the filthy things that Allah has forbidden, but if any commits any of them let him cover it with the covering of Allah. On the contrary, we are ordered not to commit sins and to stay away from them and what leads to them. Rather, covering of sins protects the society from bad influences and the spread of evil. The open sinner is subject to punishment in this world and in the Hereafter. Whatever sin Allah covers in this world will not be exposed in the Hereafter but the open sinner has thrown that aside.
People become emboldened to commit sin openly when they have lost the sensitivity to sin.
This occurs only when one has repeatedly committed sins until they become part of their habits and character. They no longer feel ashamed of the sins nor recognize them as such. When they commit them publicly, they openly encourage others to follow. If few are strong enough to stop or directly admonish or chastise the evil doers, societal pressure upon them to conform to good conduct becomes weak, and the rebellious or sinful become emboldened and increasingly more open until after a time their evil becomes accepted and commonplace. One great difference between then and now is that although people committed sins, they dared not do so openly because such behavior was still not socially acceptable.