REVENGE porn and related offences such as 'upskirting' will be made illegal in Ireland today under amendments to new legislation approved by the Cabinet.
The Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill seeks to tackle revenge pornography as well as online stalking and the distribution of intimate images without consent.
Meanwhile, a separate amendment to the Bill deals with 'upskirting', also known as 'down-blousing' – which is defined as taking a photograph, normally without consent, underneath a woman's skirt or dress.
Such crimes will be made punishable by heavy fines of up to €5,000 and potential jail sentences of up to six months under the new law.
The legislation was drawn up based on detailed Law Reform Commission recommendations on how to prevent harmful communications and digital safety.
Today, Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan will seek Government approval to draft – on a priority basis – the amendments to the Bill.
If the proposals are approved by the Cabinet, the Office of Parliamentary Counsel will begin work on advancing the Bill to Committee Stage in the Dáil as soon as possible.
Ireland has previously been criticised for being behind the times when it comes to dealing with new forms of online harassment and abuse such as revenge porn.
The new Bill aims to bring existing regulations up-to-date by broadening the legal definition of communication – to include all electronic, written and spoken word, including for example, an iMessage, Whatsapp or Facebook message, and a tweet or social media post.
