Over 40 cases of revenge porn reported in West Mercia Police force area since new law introduced

A new law was introduced in England and Wales over sharing sexually explicit images without the subject's consent in April last year.

Of the 44 reported cases in the West Mercia Police region since the introduction of the law, 37 of the victims were women, with the 31 cases involving the offence being committed against ex-partners.

More than half the total number of complaints involved victims in their 20s, with seven teenagers also targeted – with the youngest being 14 years old. The oldest victim was 52 years old.

The figures, which were released following a Freedom of Information request, also revealed only seven suspects were charged and two cautioned following the 44 complaints. Ten of the reported cases are also still under investigation or filed.

During the same period, there were 80 reported cases in the West Midlands Police region.

Revenge porn is defined by the Government as the sharing of private, sexual material, either photos or videos, of another person without their consent and with the purpose of causing embarrassment or distress.

The images are sometimes accompanied by personal information about the subject, including their full name, address and links to their social media profiles.

The offence applies both online and offline and to images which are shared electronically or in a more traditional way so includes the uploading of images on the internet, sharing by text and e-mail, or showing someone a physical or electronic image.

Under the Criminal Justice and Courts Act those found guilty of the crime can face a sentence of up to two years in prison.

The figures released by West Mercia Police this month, following the request, revealed the most offences took place on Facebook.

Out of the 44 cases reported, Facebook was where the highest number of the sexual images had been posted, with 23 incidents. Whatsapp had been involved in four, Instagram two and one shared via email.

Forty of the reported cases involved a photo, while two involved just video and two used both an image and video of their victim.

Laura Higgins, helpline manager at the UK Safer Internet Centre, said the figures did not surprise her – especially in relation to the highest number of victims in the region being women, as three-quarters of their clients are women.

She said: "Typically we find most of our clients are women, with the majority of those cases involving ex-partners but not exclusively, there are instances when ex-partners aren't involved."

Miss Higgins said the finding that did shock her was that Facebook was the most commonly used platform.

"What we find is that actually Facebook is the minority platform for that sort of content. We find that it tends to be dedicated sites for adult content," she said. "However what we do notice is Facebook is used in domestic instances as it causes maximum damage and harm, as what's posted on Facebook can be seen by family and friends, therefore causing the most embarrassment for victims."

She also said although the new law is a step in the right direction, the worst cases yet haven't been seen yet.

"What we've seen initially is cases that go up before the magistrates where the defendant pleads guilty and it's dealt with there and then, what we will be seeing more of is the cases that go before crown where we will see those two year custodial sentences imposed that will act as a deterrent in committing this type of offence," she said.

Miss Higgins added: "There's also been a lot of victim blaming, which needs to stop. There's this perception that this just happens to a certain type of woman, that's wrong, anyone can be a victim. People need to be more empathic."

Detective Chief Inspector Sean Paley of West Mercia Police said: "Revenge porn can have a very distressing impact on victims and we take all incidents reported to us seriously.

"We would urge anyone who has been a victim to report it to the police. Rest assured that we will investigate crimes of this nature and will also provide victims with the appropriate support."