Image-based abuse – impacts and needs
A high proportion of those targeted by image-based abuse have suffered serious impacts.
11% of online Australians 18+ have had a nude or sexual photo/video posted online or sent on without their consent.
What did victims feel and how were they affected by recent image-based abuse?
How they felt:
- Annoyed, 65%
- Angry, 64%
- Humiliated, 55%
- Depressed, 40%
- Afraid for their safety, 32%
How they were negatively affected:
- Self-esteem, 42%
- Mental health, 41%
- Physical well-being, 33%
Image-based abuse had various negative impacts on victims' lives:
- Relationship with friends, 33%
- Intimate/sexual relationships, 28%
- Performance at work or study, 28%
- Relationships with family, 27%
Victims feared their images may be discovered by their:
- Friends, 51%
- Family, 48%
- Employer, 41%
- Intimate partner, 40%
- Childre, 39%
Finding information and support *
Nearly 8 in 10 adult Australians would not know where to go if they became a victim of image-based abuse. Only 22% of adults identified the following sources of help and support:
- Police, 71%
- ACORN (Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network), 46%
- Support services, 36%
- Parents, family and/or friends, 36%
- Online search, 27%
- Lawyer, 25%
- eSafety Commissioner, 23%
- Website/social media help centre, 22%
What information or support would be helpful?*
- How to get the image removed, 72%
- How to report it, 68%
- Information on laws relating to sharing of nude or sexual photos/videos, 62%
- Referral to support services, 45%
- How to manage the impact of image-based abuse, 43%
Willingness to report or seek advice*
- Comfortable reporting, 6 in 10
- Comfortable seeking information and advice, 5 in 10
*Question asked of all respondents, whether or not they had been a victim of image-based abuse
Source: Research commissioned by the eSafety, May 2017. Respondents comprised 3,216 online women aged 15+ and 903 online men aged 18+ in Australia.
