Overshadowed by recent dramatic developments in Canberra has been a push to introduce legislation to protect people from so-called 'revenge porn', the distributing of sexually explicit images of a person without their consent. The name comes from the trend on the internet for spurned lovers to distribute private, naked photos of their ex-partners taken while they were together.

Anneka Frayne, a lawyer with Stacks Law Firm, says the practice has become widespread with some victims finding their most intimate photos or videos spread over 'revenge porn' websites, sometimes even with their names and contact details attached. In other cases, rather than distribute images via a website the perpetrator might keep the images and hold the victim to ransom by threatening to send them to relatives and friends.

"There was a recent high-profile case of 500 Australian women who had intimate photos taken while they were in a relationship published on a US 'revenge porn' website where they were available for all to see," Ms Frayne said.

"This is a terrible invasion of privacy and breach of confidence by an ex-partner but for most Australians there is currently little that they could do. While some states have criminalised the act of 'revenge porn', most victims would have to bring civil law proceedings to try to get a remedy, such as seeking an injunction or making a claim for breach of copyright.

"A federal law would go some way to providing nation-wide protection for victims and would send a clear message to the community that this behavior is not acceptable," Ms Frayne said. "Distributing, or threatening to distribute, private sexual images without permission is an abuse of power and trust by one partner designed to shame, humiliate or punish the other for ending the relationship. It is a sexual violation, a form of sexual abuse, and it can have a long-lasting impact on a person's life and mental health."

In Canberra, Labor MPs Terri Butler and Tim Watts prepared a private members bill to jail for up to three years anyone who distributes 'revenge porn' images without consent, while website or electronic platform operators who carry them could face up to five years in jail. The proposed bill had the support of Minister assisting the Prime Minister for Women, Michaelia Cash.

"You're in an intimate relationship, you take some photos, they're not meant for anybody else. You leave the relationship and suddenly those photos are being used to blackmail you. We need to ensure that we have adequate legal protections in relation to what really is a new type of abuse," Ms Cash said.

The proposed bill was presented to the House of Representatives on 16 September 2015.

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