In an unprecedented criminal case, Kevin Bollaert, a purveyor of “revenge porn,” was found guilty of posting sexually explicit photos of women online to extort them and sentenced to 18 years in prison. Will this change the face of “revenge porn” and make the Internet safer for women?

Revenge porn is “is sexually explicit media that is publicly shared online without the consent of the pictured individual.

Revenge porn may be uploaded by ex-partners with an intention to shame or embarrass the pictured individual, or by hackers.”

Kevin Bollaert is a San Diego, California resident who operated the revenge porn site, ugotposted.com. Like other revenge porn sites, Bollaert’s site gave angry lovers, mostly men, the opportunity to post damaging and humiliating pictures of former girlfriends and wives. These pictures often portrayed the women in comprising positions and featured nudity.

There was a particularly sick twist to Bollaert’s business: “Unlike many other revenge porn websites where the subject of the photos is anonymous, ugotposted.com required that the poster include the subject’s full name, location, age and Facebook profile link. As a result, the victims experienced severe harassment through social media, at their places of work and in other communities.”

Furthermore, Bollaert not only published pictures like this in the first place, but once they were published, he would then demand between $250 and $350 from the victims to remove their photos through a second website he owned called changemyreputation.com.

Bollaert’s conviction is setting a major precedent: “It was the first case of its type in the United States, and California was the first state to prosecute someone for posting humiliating pictures online. Bollaert was convicted of 27 counts of identity theft and extortion in connection to the thousands of photos posted online.” Sixteen states with in the United States have passes laws to regulate porn, while countries such as Israel and Germany have passed similar regulations.

The female victims of Bollaert’s crimes were incredibly traumatized by his actions: “Eight women told Superior Court Judge David Gill how they were victimized by having the pictures appear on the website.

One woman said she received 400 messages on social media after the pictures were shown. She said she was forced to quit college and seek help in a mental hospital.

‘It's been so traumatic,’ she said. ‘It's a daily struggle to get my life together.’”

Revenge porn is more than just embarrassing, it is incredibly dangerous and can cause serious mental distress and major life upheavals for its victims.

California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris released a statement in response to the ruling, identifying the case as a cautionary tale for those seeking to participate in the revenge porn industry: “Today’s sentence makes clear there will be severe consequences for those that profit from the exploitation of victims online. Sitting behind a computer, committing what is essentially a cowardly and criminal act will not shield predators from the law or jail. We will continue to be vigilant and investigate and prosecute those who commit these deplorable acts.” 

Bollaert’s case is a major win against the cyber-exploitation that primarily targets women. However, revenge porn cases can be difficult to prosecute. Attorney Tony Solare notes that, ““It’s hard to prove someone did the act if they did it through a computer. Unless you can prove someone did it with that IP address they can say I didn’t do this. I can sit here and think of a million ways people can commit this crime without getting caught.”

 

Ultimately, Bollaret’s conviction is an important first step in what will undoubtedly be a long road ahead to strike back against the specter of revenge porn and cyber-exploitation.