Police deal with almost five cases a week where intimate photographs of under-18s have been shared without the subject’s consent, often by a former partner, on social media networks including Facebook and Instagram.
The true scale of the problem, which has been revealed for the first time in a series of Freedom of Information requests by The Telegraph, comes amid a growing trend among young people for “sexting” – sending indecent images of themselves.
The issue of “revenge porn” became so acute that a new law in April 2015 which made it illegal to disclose a „private sexual photograph or film” without the consent of the person depicted in the content, and with the intent to cause them distress.
Since then there have been 1,232 cases reported to police, including 191 against teenagers. The youngest victim was an 11-year-old and six 12-year-olds have also been targeted, figures from 35 forces show.
It is feared that the number of victims could be much higher as not all forces responded, and many do not record ages.
Campaigners say that those dealt with by police are just the tip of the iceberg as many go unreported because of the intimate nature of the crime.
Sentences have ranged from a 12-month community order to 12 weeks in jail. The crime can attract a two year jail sentence.
Alison Saunders, the director of public prosecutions, has described it as a “particularly distressing crime” which is “often brought about by the vengeful actions of former partners” and intends to “publicly humiliate”
While the oldest victim, a 62-year-old from Staffordshire, had letters containing sexual photos sent to their workplace, the data shows that young people are more likely to have their private sexual photographs circulated on social media sites such as Facebook, which was the most common method of distribution, and Instagram.
The first teenager to be tried under the Revenge Porn laws was sentenced in November at Stevenage Crown Court.
The 17-year-old admitted posting a video of his then 14-year-old girlfriend on Instagram after they split up.
The first figures showing the extent of the issue have led to calls for better education for children on how to stay safe online.
David Mackintosh MP, whose constituency Northampton South saw 12 year-olds targeted, said: “There is clearly a link with social media use by children and it seems more work needs to be done to educate people about the dangers of misuse on the Internet. I intend to raise this matter with the Home Secretary.”
Responding to the findings, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat stressed the zero-tolerance policy in their respective Community Guidelines towards sharing sexual content, and anything that puts the privacy and safety of young people at risk.
Lucy Powell, also Shadow Secretary of State for Education, was critical of how children are currently educated about staying safe online: “It is vital that we equip young people with the resilience and knowledge they need to stay safe, and navigate their way through the downsides of new media.
“But this Government is still refusing to act on calls for compulsory, age-appropriate, sex and relationships education in all state-funded schools, which would teach children about issues such as staying safe in relationships and online.”
Article by Tom Calver