“It was hell walking into lectures and knowing that people were looking at private photos of me and laughing,” revealed one young Croydon victim of ‘revenge porn’.
In 2013 Amy* was a 19-year-old entering her second year at university when she became involved with another student, a friend, whom she had known since the previous year.
“I hadn’t had a boyfriend before and I really liked him,” Amy told SW Londoner.
“We had been texting quite a lot when he first asked me to send him a sexy photo.”
Amy explained that she felt confident in herself and was enjoying the flirtatious messages between them and made clear that it was her decision to send the provocative images.
It was this decision that led to the backlash Amy later received when the photographs were sent around to other students at the university.
She said: “I was humiliated and feeling completely violated but even my friends acted as if it was my fault.
“People were saying ‘well what do you expect when you send pictures like that to a boy?’”
The male student in question had sent the photographs to a number of male friends using instant messaging app WhatsApp.
“I was humiliated and feeling completely violated but even my friends acted as if it was my fault.”
“I became apologetic and felt ashamed,” Amy said.
In the space of three days Amy had become not only the victim of a revenge porn crime but of verbal abuse from other students who branded her a ‘slut’ while the perpetrator received no criticism.
She added: “There is a culture of blaming the victim when it comes to this type of thing and I was being made to feel guilty for someone else’s actions.
“It took me a long time to realise that it wasn’t my fault and that I trusted him and he abused that trust.”
Forensic psychology researcher at Coventry University, Ellis Wimbury, spoke to SW Londoner about her research into attitudes towards revenge porn which is the first of its kind.
Miss Wimbury said that her investigation is centred on whether factors such as gender, use of online pornography and self-esteem contribute to negative attitudes towards victims.
She added: “As there is no previous research to base this on, the study will take a more exploratory approach.”
Attitudes towards sexual exploitation are a fundamental issue to be addressed in the fight against revenge porn.
When asked about the issue a group of students at Loughborough University expressed that there was blame on both sides.
One history student said: “If a girl sends you a naked photo then she should expect that your mate is going to see it too.”
In October 2014 the Ministry of Justice released a statement outlining that those who maliciously share sexually explicit pictures will face prosecution under new laws.
Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said: “We want those who fall victim to this type of disgusting behaviour to know that we are on their side and will do everything we can to bring offenders to justice.”
Although acts of revenge porn may currently be prosecuted under various existing laws it is being made a specific offence in the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill to become law at some point in 2015.
In November 2014 21-year-old Liam King was reported to be the first person in Britain to be jailed for revenge porn after the government promised to crackdown on the issue.
King used WhatsApp to display explicit images of his ex-girlfriend after they had split up and received a 12-week sentence under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.
UK government efforts to tackle the problem of revenge porn has trailed other countries which have led the way in fighting the crime.
In the US efforts to tackle the issue are far more prominent with campaigns such as End Revenge Porn set up by the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative attracting worldwide attention and helping to secure legislation in 12 states.
*Name has been changed to protect the identity of the victim.
Picture courtesy of Adam Fagen, with thanks
