Children as young as 11 are falling victim to revenge porn while their abusers often evade justice, according to police figures.
A girl of 11 in Manchester and another aged 13 in Thames Valley are among the victims in 149 reports in England and Wales during the past two-and-a-half years.
Laura Higgins, of the UK Safer Internet Centre, said: ‘I feel this is just the tip of the iceberg.
‘Plenty of people, particularly young people, won’t want to go down the police route or even speak about them at all.’
Only eight of the 43 police forces keep data on reports, prompting fears that offenders are getting away with humiliating victims. They include ex-partners of the offender, which can be men as well as women.
A Cambridge schoolboy threatened to share pictures of a fellow pupil, and two 15-year-olds were among victims in Leicestershire.
A taxi driver blackmailed a passenger into sex after discovering naked images of her.
Convictions fell under the malicious communications act.
But police are largely powerless to stop those responsible until new laws pass through the Lords next month.
Former culture secretary Maria Miller said the law needed to be clear: ‘This is not a victimless crime – it is a sexual act against another individual.’
