Assessing image-based sexual abuse: Measurement, prevalence, and temporal stability of sextortion and nonconsensual sexting ("revenge porn") among adolescents.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study is to develop a new measure of victimization and perpetration of two frequent forms of image-based sexual abuse, namely sextortion (i.e., the threat of distributing sexual images to pressure the victim into doing something) and nonconsensual sexting (i.e., distributing sexual images of someone without the consent of the victim). Additional aims were to analyze the prevalence of these forms of victimization and perpetration and to examine their temporal stability over a 1-year period. METHODS: The sample was made up of 1820 Spanish adolescents (mean age = 13.38, SD = 1.42; 929 girls, 878 boys, 3 nonbinary, and 10 did not indicate gender) who completed self-report instruments on image-based sexual abuse and related variables (e.g., cyberbullying victimization). RESULTS: Confirmatory factor analysis supported a structure composed of the four hypothesized factors: sextortion victimization and perpetration, and nonconsensual sexting victimization and perpetration. Higher sexting, cyberbullying victimization, and symptoms of depression and anxiety had stronger associations with image-based sexual victimization than with perpetration, which showed evidence of concurrent validity. Prevalence was 2.6% and 0.7% for sextortion victimization and perpetration, respectively, and 3.4% and 4.9% for nonconsensual sexting victimization and perpetration, respectively. Temporal stability over 1 year was .26 for sextortion victimization, .19 for nonconsensual sexting victimization, .33 for nonconsensual sexting perpetration (all ps < .001), and nonsignificant for sextortion perpetration. The stability of nonconsensual sexting victimization was significantly higher for girls compared to boys, whereas nonconsensual sexting perpetration was more stable over 1 year for boys. CONCLUSIONS: Future studies must advance the analysis of the predictors and consequences of image-based sexual abuse among adolescents to better prevent this problem. Prevalence of sextortion and nonconsensual sexting is not negligible, and these problems should be particularly addressed in prevention programs.

Sexting: What's Law Got to Do with It?

Sexting, the phenomenon commonly defined as the sending, receiving, and forwarding of nude, semi-nude, or sexually explicit images within digital forms of communication, is a practice that has received heightened public attention. While many scholars consider consensual sexting to be innocuous and a normative part of development, the potential for youth engagement to result in instances of cyberbullying, revenge porn, and child pornography has ignited public fear and anxiety, resulting in a messy patchwork of legal responses that often yield disproportionately punitive responses. Upon exploring the legal parameters surrounding youth sexting in Canada, this paper will argue that while the logic of the current legislation in protecting youth from harm is appropriate, its method of implementation is misguided. The legal reform advocated here calls upon child pornography and online harm laws only when the case involves an adult perpetrator, and suggests a more nuanced, graduated juvenile scheme when the behavior involves youth sexting participants.

Intrasexual Competition as a Predictor of Women's Judgments of Revenge Pornography Offending.

Recent legislative developments have led to a marked increase in the empirical investigation of motivations and judgments of so-called acts of "revenge pornography" offending. In two independently sampled studies, we used moderation analyses to investigate whether higher levels of intrasexual competition predicted more lenient judgments of revenge pornography offenses as a function of sex (Study 1, N = 241), and whether such relationships would be further moderated by physical attractiveness (Study 2, N = 402). Potential covariates of callous-unemotional traits, empathy, and victimization history were controlled for. Opposing our hypotheses, we consistently observed a trend for higher levels of intrasexual competition being associated with more lenient judgments of revenge pornography offenses involving male victims by female participants. The results are discussed in terms of intrasexual competition potentially sharing variance with unobserved constructs in the wider sexological literature, and of the key relevance of these findings for future empirical investigation into judgments of nonconsensual image-based offending.

Why did she send it in the first place? Victim blame in the context of 'revenge porn'.

'Revenge porn' or 'cyber rape' occurs when intimate images that were previously sent with permission are leaked to a wider audience without consent. This research investigated the perceptions that individuals form about 'revenge porn' victims, aiming to gain more understanding from a victimisation perspective as a first step towards improving victim outcomes. One hundred and twenty-two individuals were presented with a scenario depicting a leaked intimate image with a female victim. Two distinct nudity levels: low (lingerie) and high (bare-chest, breasts exposed) were included, and participants' responses to the Sexual Double Standards Scale were analysed to determine whether acceptance of the traditional sexual double standard was correlated with victim perception. Results indicated that victims were perceived as more promiscuous and more blameworthy when they were more naked, and by participants with more traditional gender roles. There is a need for policy to address potential stigma directed at 'revenge porn' victims.

[Sexting as a risk? : On consensual and non-consensual distribution of personal erotic pictures using digital media]. / Sexting als Risiko? : Zum konsensuellen und nichtkonsensuellen Versand persönlicher erotischer Fotos mittels digitaler Medien.

BACKGROUND: Digital media are used for the purpose of various sexual experiences. In recent years the exchange of erotic text messages or images ("sexting") has gained the attention of academic research and has increasingly been the center of public discussion on sexual boundary violations and violence via digital media. The unwanted forwarding of images to a third party is especially relevant in this respect. In contrast to media reports about sexting as a risk behavior with serious consequences, there is little empirical analysis about the actual sexting practice of adolescents and adults in Germany. OBJECTIVE: This paper is the first to describe sexting behavior of young adults in Germany on the basis of a large representative student sample. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data were collected in 2012 in the course of a nationwide study. Students from 15 universities were asked among other things about their experiences with sending erotic text messages or images, the non-consensual forwarding of images and its consequences. RESULTS: More than half of the student sample reported sending erotic text messages, 26.8% of women and 16.8% of men had sent erotic images to someone, in most cases to their partner. Of the sexters, 2% mentioned that their images had been forwarded to another person without their consent. CONCLUSION: The results indicate that in Germany sexting is mostly practiced in the context of a romantic relationship. Only a small percentage experience unwanted forwarding of images, and negative consequences are not reported for all incidents; however, this does not relativize the impact of those events implicating serious negative consequences for the involved person.

"Snapping, sharing and receiving blame": A systematic review on psychosocial factors of victim blaming in non-consensual pornography.

Non-consensual pornography has become a growing concern, with potentially negative consequences for the victims. Victims of revenge porn are more likely to be blamed, and understanding why and how blame is attributed toward victims of non-consensual pornography is crucial to support them and reduce the negative consequences. This study aimed to explore and synthesize the existing evidence on victim blaming in non-consensual pornography and the underlying psychosocial factors within the context of attribution framework. A comprehensive systematic review was conducted across four databases namely PubMed, ProQuest, Google Scholar, and Scopus for English-language studies published from April 2012 to June 2022. Data from the selected studies were extracted and collated into the review matrix. Among the 22 full-text reviews, 10 records that met the eligibility criteria were included in the final review. Two themes namely "Culture and morality" and "gendered differences in attributions of blame" were derived from a thematic synthesis of 10 studies and reflected the psychosocial underpinnings of victim blaming. The review highlighted how cultural narratives and perceived immorality play a major role in how attributions are placed on self or others for victim blaming in "non-consensual pornography." Blame attributions emerging from gender stereotyping and gendered responsibilization within cultural and societal contexts were found to impact self-blame and compound victimization in non-consensual pornography. The study findings implicated that recognizing psychosocial underpinnings of victim blame attribution in revenge porn would allow for evolving suitable legislative and policy responses for designing effective educative and preventative strategies.

Image-Based Sexual Abuse Perpetration: A Scoping Review.

Image-based sexual abuse (IBSA) refers to the nonconsensual creating, taking, or sharing of intimate images, including threatening to share images. It can also include coercing someone into sharing intimate images, or sending unwanted intimate images. In recent years, there has been growing attention to the nature, scope, and impacts of IBSA, but comparatively little attention has been paid to the perpetration of these harms. This scoping review consolidates and synthesizes the existing knowledge on the perpetration of IBSA against adults. The review involved a systematic search of scholarly and gray literature across select databases. In total, 26 studies met the inclusion criteria. Studies were included if they were published in English between 2013 and 2023 and reported on findings of a sample of adults over the age of 16 who admitted IBSA perpetration behaviors. The review found that prevalence of subtypes of IBSA varied significantly across the studies. There was consensus that adults who engage in IBSA perpetration are more likely to be men, younger adults, and LGBTIQ+. Motivations were multifaceted, but tended to relate to social rewards, power dynamics, sexual gratification, and retaliatory impulses. Dark Tetrad traits were found to be positively associated with IBSA perpetration. The research also indicates on overlap between victimization and perpetration, as well as an association with other offending behaviors, such as intimate partner violence. Prevention interventions should be focused on changing the opportunities, affordances, and infrastructures for offending, as well as addressing problematic societal attitudes and norms, with early interventions focused on building resilience and self-esteem, and promoting healthy behaviors and respectful relationships.

Legal Protection of Revenge and Deepfake Porn Victims in the European Union: Findings From a Comparative Legal Study.

The use of images of persons in a pornographic context (without the prior consent of the person concerned) on the internet is an increasingly widespread infringement. Unlawful activities carried out with the use of generated images and artificial intelligence are a variant of this phenomenon. "Revenge porn" and "deepfake porn" illustrate the inadequacy of legal systems vis a vis the fast-changing reality. Using the comparative law method, a comparison was made between the current laws of nine EU Member States to create a map of protection for victims of revenge porn. As the results showed, in three of the studied countries there is a separate incrimination of revenge porn; however, the conceptual scope of its definition is significantly different and it is these differences that determine the legal way for the victims to assert their rights. This article is a comparison of the current legal regulations of selected European Union countries and the means of legal protection used by the victims. The text presents the differences occurring in the legal systems adopted in the countries subject to analysis, as well as an assessment of possible solutions at the legal and technological level to face the existing problem.

Sextortion: A Scoping Review.

Sextortion refers to making threats to share nude or sexual images to coerce the victim into complying with certain demands, such as paying a ransom, sharing intimate images, or engaging in unwanted acts. Sextortion occurs in a diverse range of contexts, including intimate partner abuse, cyberbullying, sexuality or sex worker "outing," online dating, "cybersex," sex trafficking, online sexual exploitation of children, computer hacking, and organized crime. Despite the heightened media focus, few studies have measured the prevalence, nature, and impacts of sextortion. We conducted a scoping review with the aim of providing a comprehensive overview of existing empirical research on sextortion victimization and perpetration among youth and adults. In total, 24 studies were identified based on predefined eligibility criteria. We found that studies focusing on youth reported prevalence ranging from 0.7% to 5.0%, while studies involving adults ranged from 4.0% to 18.7%. The review found that young people and sexual minorities are more likely to experience victimization, while men, young people, and sexual minorities are more likely to self-report engaging in sextortion offending. The review found that perpetrators are more likely to be intimate partners or other known persons as opposed to strangers and that there was an overlap between sextortion perpetration and victimization. Finally, we also found that sextortion can result in significant harms, and that reporting and help-seeking remain very low due to shame, fear, and negative perceptions of police and digital platforms. The findings highlight existing gaps and provide recommendations for future research, policy, and practice.

Image-Based Sexual Abuse Associated Factors: A Systematic Review.

Purpose: Image-Based Sexual Abuse (IBSA) is a recently studied form of violence and abuse perpetrated using technology. This systematic review aims to examine and systematize studies exploring factors associated with IBSA (e.g., victimization, perpetration, and propensity to perpetrate). Method: Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) statement, 17 articles were included. Results: The results of this study highlighted conceptual and methodological limitations in the literature on IBSA. Aside from these limitations, this systematic review identified factors associated with IBSA, focusing on four macro-areas: victimization, perpetration, propensity to perpetrate IBSA, and IBSA implications. The results demonstrated the role of psychological, relational, and social variables, although the effect sizes observed in the quantitative studies were small or in few cases moderate. Conclusions: These results suggest further research should be carried out to explore the multidimensionality of IBSA and its associated factors, which may assist in guiding interventions to promote preventive and rehabilitative methods to lower the prevalence of this crime and its consequences.

Cyber Sextortion: An Exploratory Analysis of Different Perpetrators Engaging in a Similar Crime.

Sextortion, a portmanteau of "sexual" and "extortion," is the threat to distribute intimate, sexual materials unless a victim complies with certain demands. Cyber sextortion is part of a larger continuum of image-based sexual offending in which images are used for harm. Despite the serious nature of this crime, there exists a dearth of empirical knowledge of sextortion. This article employed a qualitative content analysis of media articles and court documents to explore the crimes of 152 cyber sextortion offenders. Characteristics of offenders, victims, demands, and methodology were identified and synthesized to generate a qualitative understanding of offenders who employed cyber sextortion. The results revealed four different themes of offenders based on crime characteristics: minor-focused cyber sextortion offenders, cybercrime cyber sextortion offenders, intimately violent cyber sextortion offenders, and transnational criminal cyber sextortion offenders. The diverse nature of cyber sextortion has implications for crime control policies. Certain offenders are more likely to be apprehended and prosecuted depending on the crime victim and methodology. In addition, there has been a lack of legislative action targeting cyber sextortion, which limits legal recourse available for victims. We discuss the contribution of this work to the broader literature on cyber sextortion and address some of the challenges that this crime presents to the criminal justice system.

Image-Based Sexual Abuse in a Culturally Conservative Nigerian Society: Female Victims' Narratives of Psychosocial Costs.

BACKGROUND: In the last few years, many countries have introduced laws combating image-based sexual abuse (IBSA), colloquially known as "revenge pornography." However, the significant growth in the body of literature on the legal perspectives on IBSA, and the media coverage of high profile cases have not been equally met with appreciable victimization studies. Meanwhile, the need for a victim-centered approach in studying IBSA in Nigeria is underscored by the pervasiveness and normalization of sexual violence as a result of societal attitudes about gender and sexuality in the country. Therefore, this study explored the social and psychological implications of IBSA victimization. METHODS: Using qualitative methods, 27 adult women whose sexual images have been non-consensually shared publicly through online channels were purposively selected and interviewed for the study, between September 2019 and April 2020, and a thematic analysis of the participants' narratives carried out. RESULTS: Victims of IBSA were found to be subjected to higher social condemnation, stigmatization, and isolation based on greater attribution of blames to them by their social network. Evidences of institutional re-victimization were documented. Victims also reported self-blame, paranoia, anger, guilt, depression, suicidal ideation and attempt in dealing with the abuse, secondary victimization, and social isolation. CONCLUSION: IBSA victims are faced with peculiar social and psychological consequences which separate them from victims of other forms of sexual abuse. The study suggests a review of appropriate laws and social policies to prevent IBSA, deploy more victim support services and perpetrator programs, and protect victims from secondary victimization.

Image-based Abuse: Debate and Reflections on the "Iveco Case" in Spain on Twitter.

The instance of image-based abuse that ended in the victim's suicide, known as the "Iveco case," had an unprecedented social impact in Spain in 2019. This case provoked a great social reaction and became particularly viral on social networks such as Twitter. The present research investigates how this case has been dealt with through Twitter discourse. In particular, this study aimed to identify the main elements that could explain how people engaged with the problem of nonconsensual sharing of sexually explicit images in general, and with this case in particular. In total, 1,895 tweets with the word "Iveco" written in Spain were selected by streaming API, and their content was analyzed by lexical analysis using Iramuteq software (Reinert method). This software carries out an automatic lexical classification cluster analysis that groups the most significant words and text segments according to their co-occurrence. The results revealed that, on Twitter, it was stressed that the victim was a married woman with children who had practiced sexting. However, in response to this initial description, many voices also emerged that labelled this image-based abuse as gender-based online violence. Criticism was aimed at both the passivity of the company, and the attitude of hundreds of thousands of people who share the sexting video by WhatsApp groups without permission. Consequently, several feminist mobilizations emerged, framing this case within a sexist and patriarchal society and asking for accountability. However, in contrast, countermovements such as the #NotAllMen also emerged.

The Double Standard Toward Female and Male Victims of Non-consensual Dissemination of Intimate Images.

Non-consensual dissemination of intimate images (NCII) is a growing problem of sexual violence with grave consequences for victims. However, despite recent criminalization and civil and legal sanctions, there is reason to suspect that the majority of NCII cases remain unreported. The reasons for that may be similar to the ones accounting for under-reporting in cases of physical sexual violence and are tied to society's attitude toward victims. Being a relatively new form of violence, psychological research on perceptions of NCII victims and offenders is scarce. The purpose of the present study was to extend the current knowledge by comparing perceptions toward female and male victims of NCII, while manipulating the victim's role in producing the intimate material. Drawing on rape research, it was hypothesized that gender stereotypes interact with victims' sex and behavior to influence the way victims are perceived. Five-hundred and thirty-nine male and female students were presented with a scenario depicting an NCII offense in which the intimate material was either self-generated by the victim (selfies) or stealth-taken by the victim's ex-intimate partner. Victim and offender sex were also manipulated. The findings indicate a differential treatment toward female and male victims of NCII, depending on their role in the taking of the intimate images. More blaming was attributed toward a female victim whose intimate images were self-taken, in comparison to all other research conditions, and negative feelings toward her were the highest as well. These blame attributions, as well as negative feelings toward female victims, were particularly high on the side of male participants. The findings are interpreted as reflecting perceptions of traditional gender roles and a double standard toward female and male sexual behavior.

'Young People Just Resolve It in Their Own Group': Young People's Perspectives on Responses to Non-Consensual Intimate Image Distribution.

While responses to non-consensual intimate image distribution (NCIID) often highlight criminal law remedies, little is known about how young people are choosing to respond to this act and whether they perceive legal intervention as a useful tool. Drawing from interviews with 10 teenagers and survey responses from 81 adult supporters, we provide insight into how young people perceive the supports available to them for responding to NCIID. We find young people may avoid seeking support from both the criminal justice system and adults in general due to fears of adult overreaction, victim blaming and shaming, and self/peer criminalization.

Nonconsensual Porn as a Form of Intimate Partner Violence: Using the Power and Control Wheel to Understand Nonconsensual Porn Perpetration in Intimate Relationships.

Over the last decade, nonconsensual porn (NCP), or the sharing of sexually explicit material without a person's consent, has become a growing problem with potentially far-reaching adverse consequences for victims. The purpose of this article is to propose and consider a framework for advancing the field's understanding of NCP within the context of intimate relationships including situating NCP relative to other forms of relational abuse. Specifically, we examined the extent to which NCP in intimate partner relationships was perpetrated using tactics from the Power and Control Wheel through a summative content analysis of U.S. news stories on NCP from 2012 to 2017. This analysis established that NCP has been perpetrated using all eight of the abuse metatactics in the Power and Control Wheel, with the three most common being emotional abuse, coercion and threats, and denial/blame/minimization. Treating NCP in relationships as a potential form of partner violence provides a basis on which to understand the etiology, manifestation, motives, and impact of this form of abuse and informs practitioners' ability to design prevention efforts and engage a trauma-informed response to survivors.

Slumdog romance: Facebook love and digital privacy at the margins.

Facebook has consolidated its position as the one-stop-shop for social activity among the poor in the global South. Sex, romance, and love are key motivations for mobile and Internet technology usage among this demographic, much like the West. Digital romance is a critical context through which we gain fresh perspectives on Internet governance for an emerging digital and globalizing public. Revenge porn, slut-shaming, and Internet romance scams are a common and growing malady worldwide. Focusing on how it manifests in diverse digital cultures will aid in the shaping of new Internet laws for a more inclusive cross-cultural public. In specific, this article examines how low-income youth in two of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) nations - Brazil and India - exercise and express their notions on digital privacy, surveillance, and trust through the lens of romance. This allows for a more thorough investigation of the relationship between sexuality, morality, and governance within the larger Facebook ecology. As Facebook becomes the dominant virtual public sphere for the world's poor, we are compelled to ask whether inclusivity of the digital users comes at the price of diversity of digital platforms.

Exposição íntima online: experiências de mulheres brasileiras e seu acesso a políticas públicas / Online intimate exposure: experiences of brazilian women and their access to public policies / Exposición íntima online: experiencias de mujeres brasileñas y su acceso a las políticas públicas

Exposição íntima online (conhecida como pornografia de vingança; slut shaming) consiste na divulgação, ou ameaça, de materiais íntimos da vítima, caracterizando uma cultura, atualizada através da internet, de exposição e humilhação de mulheres por sua sexualidade. Este artigo se propõe a analisar as experiências de exposição íntima online vivenciadas pelas mulheres brasileiras usuárias da internet e as políticas públicas por elas acessadas. A pesquisa, qualitativa e fundamentada na perspectiva de gênero foi realizada através de questionário online respondido por 1.028 mulheres. Os dados foram analisados através de estatística descritiva e análise de conteúdo temático-categorial, com auxílio dos softwares SPSS e MaxQDA. Cinco por cento das participantes haviam sofrido exposição íntima online, praticada majoritariamente por um parceiro ou ex-parceiro. A busca por políticas públicas foi baixa e identificada como insatisfatória. Estimamos que os resultados possam contribuir com a construção do conhecimento científico e embasar o atendimento profissional às vítimas de exposição íntima online.

Online intimate exposure (known as revenge porn; slut shaming) consists in the disclosure, or threat, of the victim's intimate material, characterizing a culture, updated through the internet, of exposure and humiliation of women for their sexuality. This article aims to analyze the experiences of online intimate exposure experienced by Brazilian women who use the internet and the public policies accessed by them. The research, being qualitative and based on a gender perspective, was conducted through an online questionnaire, answered by 1.028 women. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and thematic-categorical content analysis, with the aid of the softwares SPSS and MaxQDA. Five percent of the participants had undergone intimate online exposure, mostly practiced by a partner or ex-partner. The search for public policies was low and identified as unsatisfactory. We estimate that the results can contribute to the construction of scientific knowledge and support professional care for victims of online intimate exposure.

La exposición íntima online (conocida como pornografía de venganza; slut shaming) consiste en la divulgación, o amenaza, del material íntimo de la víctima, caracterizando una cultura, actualizada a través de Internet, de humillación de mujeres por su sexualidad. Este artículo pretende analizar las experiencias de exposición íntima online vividas por mujeres brasileñas que utilizan internet y las políticas públicas a las que acceden. La investigación, cualitativa y en base a una perspectiva de género, fue realizada a través de un cuestionario online, respondido por 1.028 mujeres. Los datos se analizaron mediante estadística descriptiva y el análisis de contenido temáticocategórico, con la ayuda de los programas SPSS y MaxQDA. Cinco por ciento de las participantes habían sufrido exposición íntima online, en su mayoría practicada por una pareja o expareja. La búsqueda de políticas públicas fue baja y identificada como insatisfactoria. Estimamos que los resultados pueden contribuir a la construcción de conocimiento científico y apoyar la atención profesional a las víctimas de exposición íntima online.

Proteção da privacidade online na pornografia de vingança / Online privacy protection in revenge porn

Este trabalho apresenta um estudo comparado entre o Brasil e os Estados Unidos sobre a pornografia de vingança, avaliando a efetividade dos instrumentos existentes para a proteção das vítimas e a reparação dos danos dessa prática, a partir de uma análise qualitativa. Parte-se das seguintes perguntas de pesquisa: De que forma o conceito de privacidade se aplica ao ambiente virtual? Como as tecnologias possibilitaram o desenvolvimento de novas formas de intimidade, bem como de práticas como a pornografia de vingança? Analisa-se o direito à privacidade dentro da concepção de esfera pública e privada no ambiente virtual e as novas formas de intimidade nesse contexto, apontando possíveis caminhos para melhorias na legislação vigente sobre a temática.