Five revenge porn offences over six years in Cambridgeshire end in charge
69 incidents were reported to Cambridgeshire Police over the same period
Only five cases of revenge porn reported to Cambridgeshire Police over the last six years resulted in a charge.
Figures obtained by Greatest Hits Radio also found 69 incidents of this type - where intimate photos or videos are published without consent to cause distress to a victim - were recorded by the force between January 2019 and October 2024.
There were four incidents reported to Cambridgeshire Police in 2019 - the lowest figure - before reaching to a high of 19 in 2023 and 2024.
Detective Chief Inspector Amerjit Singh - who works in the force's protecting vulnerable persons team - believes there is a positive message from this.
"I think it's more topical than ever with violence against women and girls and we're looking to actively encourage people to report these offences, so the fact the trend is going higher is positive in the sense people feel confident to come to us to deal with these matters," he said,
"It has historically been an underreported crime; the legislation had changed to incorporate revenge porn and that has allowed individuals to come forward."
Alternative ways than a charge
One of the last six years where incidents were reported to Cambridgeshire Police resulted in no charge.
Mr Singh said despite this, police are trying to find alternative solutions other than through criminal justice.
"We want to try and avoid criminalising children if they are not doing it with intent to exploit or perhaps cause that harm, and there are out-of-court diversions we would use in certain circumstances that perhaps aren't alluded to in the figures," he said.
"Depending on the nature of the case, it's difficult to elaborate whether a charge would take place.
"Sometimes if a victim doesn't want us to pursue a prosecution but wants us to have a conversation with the individual, that would take place and potentially isn't captured as an outcome, so that's probably why there's a trend (in few charges)."
'We look to give victims the best possible service'
Ten years ago, revenge porn was made a specific offence,, which covers the sharing of images both online and offline, as well as images posted to social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, and shared by text.
Now, the Government's crackdown on intimate image abuse will see people charged and prosecuted over sexually explicit 'deepfakes', which are pictures, videos or audio clips made using artificial intelligence to look real.
Mr Singh believes that despite few offences ending in charges, help is at hand for victims.
"We would look to ensure we're doing everything we can to support that victim and give them the best possible service, even if it didn't result in a criminal justice outcome," he added.