LAST UPDATE | 23 Dec 2021
JUSTICE MINISTER HELEN McEntee has said research from her department has uncovered some “stark findings” about image-based abuse in Ireland.
McEntee told The Journal that legislation passed last year sets out to punish people who “ruin lives” by sharing intimate images of people without their consent.
The minister has vowed to send a strong message to those who commit “disgusting” image-based abuse with laws currently in place allowing for offenders to be jailed for up to seven years.
New research by the Department of Justice shows that one adult in 20 claims to have had an intimate image of themselves shared online or on social media without their consent.
One in ten people under the age of 37 across the country have had intimate images of themselves been shared online.
The nationally representative survey also found that one adult in 20 claims to have had an intimate image of themselves shared online or on social media without their consent.
The research was carried out as part of the Government’s preparation for an awareness campaign around the sharing of intimate images.
The Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill 2017 - which was signed into law in December 2020 – covers a wide range of offences, including online abuse, cyberbullying, and image-based abuse.
It has come to be referred to as Coco’s Law after Nicole ‘Coco’ Fox Fenlon, who took her own life in 2018 after a period of prolonged abuse online.
Two offences dealing with the non-consensual distribution of intimate images are contained in the legislation.
The first makes it an offence to distribute, publish or to threaten to distribute intimate images without consent, and with intent to cause harm to the victim.
The punishment carries a maximum penalty of an unlimited fine and/or 7 years’ imprisonment.
Another deals with the taking, distribution or publication of intimate images without a person’s consent.
It contains a requirement that the person intended to cause harm to the victim, and would carry an offence of a maximum penalty of a €5,000 fine and/or 12 months’ imprisonment.
Speaking about the research by her department, McEntee told The Journal that by passing and enacting Coco’s Law, she believe’s the Government has sent a strong signal that this type of abuse will not be tolerated.
“Image-based abuse is disgusting and can ruin lives,” she said.
“Coco’s Law criminalises the sharing of intimate images without consent, as well as threatening to share intimate images without consent. When passing this legislation, I was clear that there must be strong penalties for these crimes.
“The punishments – up to seven years in prisons and an unlimited fine – reflect how serious these crimes are and the damage and hurt they cause.”
Departmental research
The research carried out by the Department of Justice in April included a nationally representative online survey of 1,000 adults aged over 18.
Quotas were placed on the number of interviews achieved in each demographic grouping such as age, gender, region and social class, to ensure it matched the Irish population.
The survey found that one in five adults claim to have shared an intimate image of themselves with someone else, with a higher incidence amongst younger generations.
Of those who have shared an intimate image of themselves with someone else, over one in four shared it within the last three months.
The research also found that WhatsApp (35%) and Snapchat (28%) were the most common platforms used by those who shared an intimate image of themselves.
Almost half of those who have shared an intimate image of themselves claimed the reason behind it was ‘for fun’, while one in four said they were ‘asked to send one’ and that ‘it is a normal part of dating now’.
One in five people said they sent an image ‘to entice someone that they were interested in’.
Those who shared an intimate image of themselves were most likely to have done so with someone who they were previously/currently in a long-term intimate relationship with.
The survey also found the one in five adults claim to have received an intimate image of someone else from a third party. Younger generations were more likely to claim that this had happened compared with their older counterparts.
Of those who received an intimate image of someone from a third party, three in five said they ‘did nothing’ with the image, while one in six ‘contacted the person who was in the image’.
When it comes to peoples’ awareness of the new law and what constitutes an offence, almost seven in ten adults said that ‘it is against the law in Ireland to share intimate images without consent’ and that ‘it is against the law in Ireland to forward on intimate images you may have received of someone without their consent to others.
However, just half of all adults believe it is against the law in Ireland to threaten to share intimate images without consent.
“This shows how important Coco’s Law is – and how important it is that we are clear that sharing intimate images without consent is a crime which will be investigated and will be punished,” McEntee said.
“I want people to know that sharing intimate images without consent is illegal, socially unacceptable, has harmful consequences and is a form of abuse.
“I want victims of this abuse to know that this crime can be reported to Hotline.ie or An Garda Síochána, and that there is help in getting these images removed quickly.
“I want to encourage people to think – to not share intimate images if they think the person featured hasn’t given consent.“
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