What should you do if your private or intimate photos are leaked?

Sharing or threatening to share nude or intimate photos or videos without the consent of the person shown is a criminal offence and a form of image-based abuse called. Colloquially, it is often referred to as ‘revenge porn’, due to the number of perpetrators receiving intimate images from their partner consensually during the relationship, and then sharing them once the relationship has ended to cause the victim distress or embarrassment. 

Worryingly, ‘revenge porn’ is on the rise, with the Revenge Porn Helpline reporting a 20.9% increase in reports throughout 2024. There has been increasing awareness and media coverage of the problem in recent years, with the Online Safety Bill 2023 introducing new provisions to more effectively provide justice for victims, including the creation of new intimate image sharing offences.

Such a violation of privacy often has the effect of leaving victims feeling helpless and exposed. It is therefore extremely important to be aware both of your legal rights and the key practical steps to be taken in the event of a leak.

If you have had your private photos leaked, click the link below to contact our expert Reputation & Privacy Solicitors.

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What is revenge porn?

Revenge porn is where someone shares an image or video of another person without their consent to cause distress or embarrassment. It is often ex-partners that do this to try to upset the other person due because the relationship broke down. It is now regarded as a criminal offence and applies to both online and offline publication, so can include:

• Uploading photos to the internet
• Sharing by email or text
• Showing someone the image (either the physical image or an electronic version)

Private photos would include anything that would not normally be seen in public. Sexual images do not necessarily need to be nude photos but can be anything that is regarded as sexual including someone engaged in a sexual act or posing in a sexually provocative way.

Legal protections for victims of revenge porn/image-based sexual abuse

Regardless of how photos are obtained, revenge porn is a crime under the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015. The maximum sentence for this offence is two years’ imprisonment.

Sharing private photos may also be an offence under:

• Communications Act 2003
• Malicious Communications Act 1988
• Protection from Harassment Act 1997 if the behaviour is repeated and would amount to an offence of harassment

The key concept in this law is that of consent to the publication of the images. This means that, even where the private photos have been sent to another person, the recipient does not have the right to upload them online. Even threatening to do so may constitute a criminal offence, particularly if the recipient is demanding money for them not to be published, as blackmail is prohibited under the Theft Act 1968. Threats to share intimate photos unless demands for money are met is a form of blackmail often referred to as ‘sextortion’.

In situations where the photos have been obtained by hacking into a mobile device or an individual account, a further offence has likely been committed. The Computer Misuse Act 1990 defines various crimes relating to unauthorised access to computer material, and these are also punishable by imprisonment.

Finally, the law on this issue goes beyond the criminal realm. It may be possible to bring civil claims such as harassment, which, as explained below, can be remedied by compensation.

What to do if your private or intimate photos are leaked

1. Keep calm

It is natural to feel angry, upset or even vengeful when intimate photos of you have been shared online. But it is important to try and remain calm, so that you can take the best course of action.

2. Save the evidence 

Collecting evidence can help you when making a report to the police or seeking action against the perpetrator. Save conversations, images and screenshots of websites (with the URL visible) displaying the leaked images in a secure place.

If someone has threatened to release intimate photos of you, keep such messages safe and secure. If the threats were made verbally, make a note with the date and time. 

3. Seek legal advice

Perhaps most importantly of all, if you become the victim of a leak or threatened leak of private photos, it is advisable to immediately obtain legal advice from a solicitor with expertise in reputation and privacy issues.

This is because the appropriate response and timing of actions should be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. By adopting the right strategic steps, it may be possible to prevent the publication of images.

If you are a parent and intimate photos of your child aged under 18 have been leaked, then a serious criminal offence has been committed, requiring robust and decisive action to remove such images and protect your child. Having the right solicitors by your side can make all the difference, helping you navigate the associated criminal and privacy matters. 

For high-profile individuals, it is important to understand the reputational risks associated with different actions, as acting without proper consideration can generate further unwanted publicity. An expert in reputation management can adopt a strategic approach to minimise the negative impact on you and obtain a swift and discreet resolution in satisfaction of your legal rights. 

4. Inform the police

An important first step is often to inform the police of the leak or threatened leak. The police can investigate any offences committed including those detailed above.

In order for the police to be able to take appropriate action, it is often key to save and provide any relevant evidence such as screenshots of messages revealing threats of publication or evidencing the individuals in possession of the photos.

5. Contact the website or social media company

The owners of websites are known as webmasters, and these include the owners of social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram. If the leaked images have been posted online, you can inform the webmaster of the content and request that it is removed. Most social media sites have a help centre where you can report inappropriate content directly. The webmaster does not have to agree to do this though and it may be necessary to have a lawyer contact them to explain the situation.

It may be necessary to do this for several different webmasters if the photos have been shared on multiple sites, although many social media platforms now have systems in place to directly report such content. Furthermore, you can also seek to have the photos removed from search engines such as Google.

6. Consider making a civil claim

In addition to punishing the person leaking the photos, the law also recognises that victims should be compensated for the damage suffered in several instances.

It may also be possible to bring claims relating to misuse of private information and/or breach of confidence, and to obtain damages for the leak as well as recovering financial losses caused by it.

How Vardags can help victims of revenge porn

Our expert team of Reputation & Privacy solicitors frequently help public figures and high net worth individuals whose intimate photos have been shared or are being used against them as leverage for blackmail. 

Led by “the definitive reputation and privacy lawyer” Alexandra McCready, our team provides an effective media strategy to protect the reputation of clients, acting discreetly to secure the best possible outcome. They are often able to have images withdrawn from social media sites and resolve issues of blackmail without any need for police involvement.