Revenge Porn
Revenge Porn
Disclosure of private sexual images without consent, known as revenge porn, has become increasingly common with the rise of the internet and smartphones.
The term "revenge porn" encompasses various actions that typically involve an ex-partner sharing private sexual images of the victim online, with the intention of causing humiliation or embarrassment. It is considered a criminal offence to share, retweet, or forward a private sexual photo or video without the individual's consent, if the intention is to cause distress to the person depicted.
In response, the Criminal Justice and Courts Act (CJCA) 2015 created a specific offence for revenge porn, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in custody, a fine, or a community order. The law in this area has developed in a piecemeal fashion, resulting in gaps and overlaps between different areas of law.
Section 33 of the CJCA 2015 created an offence for disclosing private sexual images with intent to cause distress without consent, and this offence was amended by the section 69 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 to include threatening to disclose a private sexual image. The Law Commission is currently reviewing the law in this area to address inconsistencies and provide more structure.
Defences
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The CJCA 2015 includes various defences for revenge porn, which are as follows:
A defence is available if the defendant can prove that they had a reasonable belief that the disclosure was necessary to prevent, detect, or investigate a crime.
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A defence is available if the material was disclosed in the course of or with the intention of publishing journalistic material, and the defendant had a reasonable belief that the publication was in the public interest.
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The defendant also has a defence if they had a reasonable belief that the photograph or film had already been disclosed for a reward and that they had no reason to believe that the previous disclosure was made without the individual's consent.
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Sentence
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The offence is punishable by a maximum sentence of two years in custody for the most serious cases. This can be situations where the perpetrators conduct suggests a desire to maximise distress and humiliation, the images are circulated widely in a very public fashion and there is a significant degree of planning or repeated attempt to ensure the images remain available to be viewed. However other cases can also result in a fine or a community order.