BASINGSTOKE MP Maria Miller has launched a campaign calling for a law to protect people from ex-partners who post explicit images of them on the internet.

So-called “revenge pornography” is the uploading of sexually explicit images to the internet, without the consent of the person, to cause them embarrassment following a break-up.

The Basingstoke MP said that there are around 30 websites in the UK that are used by ex-partners to post intimate pictures of former partners, but there is currently no law to protect the victims.

Currently, legal action can only be taken against the person who posted the images online if the pictures are a breach of copyright, seen as harassment or if the subject of the image is under 18 years of age.

People who are the subject of images usually find that they are impossible to remove from the internet, as they are often reproduced on other websites within minutes.

The act of posting explicit images of former partners was made illegal in the American state of California last October which means that people who post images can be fined $1,000 or face a six-month prison sentence.

Mrs Miller, right, told The Gazette: “Obviously, the internet can be a very positive thing but it can also be used as a weapon too and I have been working to make it clear in the law that revenge pornography – the posting of intimate pictures online by wronged partners – is illegal and I want to make it a sex offence to show that society arbores such conduct.

“I have made good progress and I have got the support of a number of Ministers in Government for the approach that I am taking, and I think above all, I have got the support of the men and women who have been subject to this gross intrusion into their personal life.”

Mrs Miller added: “The ideal situation is that we see a significant reduction in the number of people posting these sorts of images online.

“I think we have to send out a very strong message that this sort of abuse is totally unacceptable.”

Mrs Miller’s amendment to the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill is due to be discussed in Parliament in October.