A north-east politician has called for teenagers to be made more aware of the dangers of sharing intimate photographs after two youths appeared in court facing “revenge porn” offences.
Two teenage boys, one aged 16 and the other 17, appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court last week after admitting crimes which left their younger victims shaken and distressed.
Both accused had solicited the private images over social media, before sharing them with others.
Aberdeenshire East SNP MSP Gillian Martin has previously flagged concerns about a so-called “sexting epidemic” among young people.
And yesterday, she said the recent cases highlighted the need for youngsters to be on their guard against the crime.
She said youngsters should “not be afraid” to turn down requests which make them feel uncomfortable.
Ms Martin said: “I have been campaigning to raise awareness of the dangers of sharing of intimate images for some time.
“The only way we can protect young people from these dangers is to share information on what can happen to them personally, and where the law stands on this.
“The decision not to share has to be one that young people feel confident in making.
“It is easy for parents and adults to lecture young people, but peer pressure is massive, so those conversations need to be taking place between peers too.”
Ms Martin has worked with North East Scotland College and the Young Scot organisation to produce films targeted at teenagers on the issue, which have since been shown in schools across Scotland.
Last Tuesday, an Aberdeenshire teenager admitted blackmailing girls as young as 12 to send him indecent images when he appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.
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The court heard that the 17-year-old befriended his victims over Facebook before convincing them to send him the images.
He coerced a 14-year-old girl he was seeing into sending him naked photos by threatening to break up with her.
The youth later targeted two 12-year-old girls and persuaded them to send him similar photographs, before sharing them.
On Wednesday, a second teenager appeared in the dock after pleading guilty to sharing intimate photos of a 15-year-old girl on social media.
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The 16-year-old pleaded guilty to disclosing a private image last February, showing the girl in “an intimate situation” and “intending to cause her fear, alarm or distress” by sending it on to others.
They will both be sentenced next month.
