NSW moves to criminalise ‘revenge porn’

Following the lead of Victoria and South Australia, the NSW Government is drafting a new law to penalise the distribution of intimate and sexually explicit images without consent.

NSW Attorney General Gabrielle Upton said consultation is set to start this month on a range of issues about “revenge porn,” which involves ex-partners seeking revenge by distributing intimate images without consent.

“These images can have a devastating emotional and social effect on the person pictured and can be used as a way to deliberately humiliate, control or harass the intended victim,” she said in a statement.

“No one has the right to share explicit photos without consent, and new laws will protect people and make it clear this kind of behaviour is totally unacceptable.”

The decision is the government’s response to the Legislative Council Committee on Law and Justice recent report over serious invasions of privacy. A consultation on the new law is meant to define “intimate” images, how they are shared or distributed as well as what penalties should apply.

”The use of mobile phones as recording devices has made it easier for people to share intimate images without consent on social media or websites, causing great distress for victims, and we need strong laws to protect them,” Upton pointed out.

As of press time, “revenge porn” carries a penalty of up to two years of prison sentence in Victoria. The same offense has a maximum fine of $10,000 or two-year jail term in South Australia.