According to disturbing new figures, the number of sexual extortion instances reported to the UK’s revenge porn helpline have almost doubled within a year.

“Sextortion,” as it’s called, occurs when images or videos are captured or sent during an online sexual exchange, and the victim is extorted and blackmailed for their intimate content. The crime is now the most reported issue with 1,124 cases in 2021 compared to 593 in 2020, with 88% of cases involving a male victim.

Revenge porn was criminalised in England and Wales in 2015, and in Northern Ireland in 2016, and those convicted of the offence face up to two years in prison and a fine. The maximum sentence is longer in Scotland, where anyone convicted of revenge porn could be jailed for up to five years.

Because the problem is not fully consenting adults taking or sending these images, but those that then share them further without consent.

Doxing, revenge porn and sextortion: how to stop your personal photos and details from being shared without your consent