Revenge porn: woman wins compensation of BRL 6 billion – 08/16/2023 – Tech

A Texas court has awarded a woman $1.2 billion in damages after ruling that she was the victim of revenge porn.

The woman, who was identified only by the initials DL in court documents, filed a lawsuit against her ex-boyfriend in 2022.

The lawsuit alleged that he posted intimate photos of her online to “publicly embarrass her” after a breakup. Their lawyers in the case said the decision was a victory for victims of “sexual abuse” carried out by sharing intimate images.

“While it is unlikely that the damages amount will actually be paid (legal debt collection in the US is a separate process), the Justice’s decision restores DL her dignity,” said Bradford Gilde, the lead female attorney, in a communicated.

Lawyers had originally sought $100 million in damages.

“We hope that the staggering value of this ruling will be a wake-up call to prevent others from committing these despicable actions,” added Gilde.

According to court documents, the woman and her ex-boyfriend started dating in 2016.

She had shared intimate photos of herself with the defendant during their relationship. After a breakup in 2021, he was accused of having posted the photos on social media platforms and adult websites without her consent.

According to the lawsuit, he allegedly sent links to the photos to his friends and family via a publicly accessible Dropbox folder.

He was also accused of having access to his ex-girlfriend’s phone, social media accounts and email, as well as the camera system in his mother’s home, which he used to spy on her.

At one point, the defendant allegedly texted the woman taunting her.

“You will spend the rest of your life trying and failing to get off the internet. Everyone you meet will hear the story and look for the pictures. Happy hunting,” he reportedly said.

Lawyers for the woman say her ex-boyfriend posted the photos “to inflict a combination of psychological abuse, domestic violence and sexual abuse”.

He did not appear in court and had a lawyer to represent him, according to US media reports.

High damages have been decided in revenge porn cases in the United States in the past. In 2018, a California woman was awarded $6.8 million after her ex-partner shared explicit photos of her on pornographic websites.

DL told a Texas television station that, after getting little help from local law enforcement, she reached out to a lawyer.

In 2016, an estimated 10 million Americans reported being victims of non-consensual pornography – or revenge pornography. Many of them are women aged 18 to 29, according to a study at the time by the Data & Society research institute.

All US states, with the exception of Massachusetts and South Carolina, have anti-revenge pornography laws in place.

This text was originally published here.