Revenge porn: definition, what the law says and what to do if you are a victim? : Current Woman Le MAG

4 out of 10 French people have already been victims of cyberviolence according to a investigation Ipsos published in 2021. Young people are particularly affected: 87% of 18-24 year olds have already been affected by acts of revenge porn. In one in two cases, the attacker is known to the victim, again according to this Ipsos study.

What is revenge porn?

Revenge porn or revenge porn is a practice consisting of take revenge on someone by posting content of a sexual nature public either to third parties or on social networks, without the consent of the person. “This distribution to the public on the internet aims to harm and humiliate the victim,” explains Jennifer Dalvin, lawyer. “Often, this practice results from a poorly experienced romantic separation linked to the practice of sexting, a contraction of sex and texting. The couple sends these sexts to each other and one of them uses this content,” develops the lawyer. “The objective is to humiliate, but for some it is also a way to extract money or to be a fun way to brag to your friends for example,” adds the specialist. The content broadcast can have different forms: images, videos, messages, voice notes of a sexual nature. “Even if the sendings have been consented to, it is the use and this distribution without the consent of the person which will be prohibited by law”, specifies Jennifer Dalvin.

Revenge Porn: what the law says

Revenge porn is an offense punishable by law via articles 226-1 and 226-2. The author who relays this content risks 1 year of imprisonment and a fine of 45,000 euros.. If an aggravating circumstance is added to the initial offense, the penalty incurred can be two years’ imprisonment and a fine of 60,000 euros.

“The law punishes invasion of privacy and the sexual nature of the content becomes an aggravating circumstance,” specifies Jennifer Dalvin.

The law punishes two points in the invasion of privacy:

• Conservation and transmission of the image to a third party
• Broadcast on social networks, capture or recording of the image

“If it is the spouse, the common-law partner, the PACS partner or a public figure who disseminates this content, this adds another aggravating circumstance to the offense,” underlines the lawyer. “The victim can also make a request for damages for moral harm.”

What to do if you are a victim?

The most difficult thing is realizing that you are a victim of revenge porn since the distribution was made without the person’s consent. “We can become aware of the offense either because a third party reports it to us, or by browsing social networks,” observes Jennifer Dalvin.

If you are a victim of this practice, it is important, according to the lawyer, to adopt certain good reflexes, namely:

• Take a screenshot of the author’s account to document the crime
• File a complaint. This complaint “can be done either at the police station or in the gendarmerie, but it can be difficult to face the gaze of a third party”, advances the professional. “The complaint can therefore be made directly to the public prosecutor via a lawyer.”
• Report content. This can be done directly on the platform of the social network concerned but also on dedicated sites such as 3018.fr, which allows the victim to be supported in their efforts or on the Pharos site to report the account of the author’s malicious profile and so this revenge porn. “This denunciation can also come from someone other than the victim,” adds the specialist.

Finally, it is important to relieve the victim of guilt, especially if they are minors. “If we have given consent for the content, it is the person who then distributes it without consent who is the culprit and who will be punished by law. There is often humiliation and shame on the part of the victims. You have to be careful because this can have dramatic consequences, particularly for minors, with a risk of withdrawal or even suicide.”concludes Jennifer Dalvin.

Thanks to Jennifer Dalvin, lawyer.