A CHILD aged 12 was the youngest victim of revenge porn in West Yorkshire last year – as the number of reported crimes increased from 117 to 193 in three years.

Sharing explicit images or videos of a person without their permission became a crime in April 2015 and the amount of crimes recorded by officers has increased considerably in that time.

Schoolchildren to people in their 60s have been among the victims after ex-partners decided to share intimate and private pictures online in devastating revenge attacks.

Figures provided to the Telegraph & Argus by West Yorkshire Police show 19 victims were aged under 18 last year, but the worst affected age group was 22 to 30-year-olds, who made 73 reports to police.

There were 117 revenge porn crimes in the first year of it being made a crime, 178 the following year and 193 in 2017/18.

Out of all the reports made since 2016, 74 victims told police they were a student or pupil at school.

Tony Stower, NSPCC head of Child Safety Online said: “It is shocking that young children are becoming victims of revenge porn and underlines that it is time for social media companies to be held to account for the material on their sites.

“Sharing nude selfies or videos can put young people at risk of bullying by peers or being targeted by adult sex offenders, so it’s vital that parents talk to their children, and that young people feel empowered to say no to sexting requests.”

Mark Burns-Williamson, West Yorkshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, urged people to report the crime.

He said: “Revenge porn is a deeply personal crime and can have a truly devastating impact on its victims.

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“It is absolutely crucial that anyone affected by this crime comes forward either through the Revenge Porn Helpline on 0845 6000 459 or to the police.

“Potential perpetrators should be warned that if they commit this crime they can face up to two years in prison, receive a fine and will have a criminal record.”

Detective Chief Inspector Wayne Horner, of West Yorkshire Police’s Safeguarding Unit, said offenders used revenge porn to cause distress and embarrassment in public.

He said: “It is something as a Force we take extremely seriously and we feel the increase in reported crimes reflects the increasing confidence of victims to be able to come forward to report the offence.

“When the new legislation was launched in 2015 there was a national campaign – Be Aware B4 You Share which sought to deter potential perpetrators by highlighting the crime but also supporting victims by directing them to the Revenge Porn Helpline and highlighting the rights of victims to have intimate images removed from websites.”