Revenge Porn

Revenge porn is a term used to describe sexually explicit media that is published online for the general consumption of the public.  This content is distributed without the consent of the individual pictured in the image or video.   The use of the term “revenge porn” stems from the fact that, in many cases, this sexually explicit content is posted by ex-lovers as a way to shame, humiliate, or otherwise harm the victim.

In February 2015, Kevin Bollaert was convicted in the state of California for identity theft and extortion, crimes committed for the purpose of operating a revenge porn website.  Bollaert would accept nude or otherwise sexually explicit images/videos from jilted exes, post the images on his website, and then demand that the victims pay him to remove the content from the site.  Bollaert’s conviction followed shortly after Noe Ineguez’s conviction in December for posting a topless photo of his ex-girlfriend on Facebook, calling her a slut, and encouraging her employer to fire her.  Ineguez was sentenced to one year in prision, Bollaert to eighteen.

The good news is that courts are taking cases related to revenge porn very seriously.  More good news?  So is the largest online search engine.

Following decisions to ban revenge porn made by Twitter, Reddit, and Facebook earlier this year, Google will remove links to revenge porn websites.  Google will even provide victims of revenge porn the opportunity of completing a form to request specific links to revenge porn sites be removed.

Google’s decision will make it more difficult to locate revenge porn and mitigate the number of individuals who will view images of victims.