Revenge porn refers to the non-consensual sharing of private sexual images or videos with the intent to cause distress to the individual depicted. It is a criminal offence under the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015. This Act was specifically designed to address the rise in cases where intimate images are distributed without consent, often as an act of retaliation after the end of a relationship.
The offence of revenge porn occurs when someone discloses private sexual images or videos of another person without their permission. The images or videos must be private and explicit, involving nudity or sexual acts that would generally not be made public. It must be done with the intention of causing the victim distress or harm so that it differentiates it from accidental or non-malicious sharing.
Distribution of revenge porn
Distribution of revenge porn can happen in a variety of ways, including:
- Social Media: Sharing explicit images or videos on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Snapchat.
- Websites: Uploading the content to specific websites designed to host or spread private sexual material, or other public sites.
- Messaging Apps: Sending intimate images through messaging platforms like WhatsApp, iMessage, or Facebook Messenger, often to the victim’s friends, family, or colleagues.
- In-Person Distribution: Physically sharing or distributing printed copies of the images or videos, such as posting them in public places or giving them to others directly.
- Public Displays: Displaying the images or videos publicly, for example, by projecting them onto a screen or sharing them in a group setting.
