‘I have moments of shame I can’t control’: the lives ruined by explicit ‘collector culture’

The swapping, collating and posting of nude images of women without their consent is on the rise. But unlike revenge porn, it is not a crime. Now survivors are demanding a change in the law

Ruby will never forget the first time she clicked on the database AnonIB. It is a so-called revenge porn" site and in January 2020, a friend had texted her for help. Ruby is a secondary school teacher, used to supporting teenagers, and her friend turned to her for advice when she discovered her images were on the site.

She didn't send the thread that she was on," says Ruby, 29. She was embarrassed, so she sent a general link to the site itself." When Ruby opened it, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I couldn't believe that such an infrastructure existed: something so well organised, so systematic, fed by the people who lived around us."