UK: victims of online VAW as young as 14

Description

Sexually explicit images of Lancashire teens as young as 14 have been posted on the internet in acts of ‘revenge porn’.

Almost 30 people have told police their nude photos were published online against their wishes since doing so became illegal in April, a Gazette investigation has revealed.

Global red tape, shady websites hosted outside the UK, and a lack of police funding have been blamed for the lack of prosecutions, which has been labelled ‘worrying and alarming’ by one revenge porn victim.

The mum of a 14-year-old Fylde schoolgirl described how a revealing picture going viral ruined her daughter’s life.

“It ruined her life for months – our lives – but we slowly got it back together.”

Of the 26 cases reported in Lancashire, four victims were under the age of 18, which means any pictures or videos could also be classed as child abuse images.