Revenge porn should become a federal crime, Senate committee hears.

By political reporter Matthew Doran

A Senate committee has recommended so-called revenge porn should become a federal crime and that a national agency should be established to police the inappropriate sharing of images.

Last year, Labor MPs Terri Butler and Tim Watts introduced a private members bill to make it a criminal offence to distribute sexually explicit images of an ex-partner without their consent.

Both the Victorian and South Australian governments have moved to criminalise the act, along with the United Kingdom and New Zealand.

The committee, chaired by Independent Senator Glenn Lazarus, made eight recommendations on how to criminalise revenge porn — or as the committee refers to it, “non-consensual sharing of intimate images”.

It said it should include knowingly or recklessly recording an intimate image without consent, as well as sharing or threatening to share such images.

“We’re very pleased that the Senate Inquiry report recommends criminalising what’s called ‘revenge porn’,” said Ms Butler, the Shadow parliamentary secretary for child safety and prevention of family violence.

“Now all we need is for Malcolm Turnbull to actually do something, to get on board and support our bill to criminalise revenge porn, or bring other legislation forward that does the same thing.

“It’s pretty clear that something needs to be done about this, we’ve got the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions and the Australian Federal Police recognising that something needs to be done.”

Ms Butler said further delay was not an option.

“This is an emerging issue that is increasingly a problem for women in family and domestic violence situations, as well as other people,” she said.

“Why doesn’t the Federal Government just stop dithering, stop stuffing around and support our call to criminalise revenge porn.

“The beauty of the Commonwealth doing it is that no matter where you are in Australia, you’ll have the benefit of the law.

“At the moment it’s a patchwork — some jurisdictions, a very small number have done something, other jurisdictions haven’t.”

Revenge porn websites ‘incredibly harassing’

Ms Butler said some of the offences covered by the proposed bill were particularly disturbing.

“And particularly those websites that actually put up images that other people have shared for money, to make a profit out of this sort of incredibly harassing and terrible treatment, those websites should be running afoul of the criminal law as well,” she said.

“We’ve had the advice of Parliamentary Counsel in drafting the bill, and we’ve also quite clearly had the opportunity to look at other models.

“I just don’t want to see more obfuscation, and I don’t want to see more delay, I want there to be action taken now.”

The Government members of the committee, Senators Ian Macdonald and Dean Smith, agreed with all of the recommendations.

However, the pair “urge a cautious and consultative approach to developing the elements of these offences”.

“The advice of legal experts will be essential in ensuring a scheme is developed that does not criminalise innocent conduct or place unsuspecting citizens in unnecessary legal peril,” Senator Macdonald wrote.

This post originally appeared on ABC News.