🔗 Share this article Transitioning from BDSM Practitioner to Technology Entrepreneur: An Unconventional Fight Against Revenge Porn Madelaine Thomas says her personal experience of having her intimate images leaked provides her a distinct perspective as a tech founder. BDSM practitioner Madelaine Thomas embodies not at all your average tech founder. Following repeated instances of clients leaking her intimate photographs, she felt "angry enough to take action" and looked to tech solutions for a solution. "These were striking images, I'm not ashamed of the pictures, I'm embarrassed of the way that they were used against me by an individual who I have never met," said Madelaine. Madelaine has won multiple accolades including the Tech Safety Innovation award at a prominent industry conference. Little over a year after launching her company, Image Angel, which employs covert digital tracking to identify perpetrators, has garnered significant recognition and was cited as exemplary procedure in an government-commissioned study earlier this year. This marks quite a departure from her background in offering BDSM services, working with clients in the world of kink and bondage. The Pervasive Problem The non-consensual sharing of private images, commonly known as image-based abuse, is a criminal offence with perpetrators risking two years in prison. It is far from an issue exclusively faced by those in the adult entertainment sector. A report indicates that around 1.42% of the women in the UK is impacted by this form of abuse each year. Madelaine, 37, explained victims lived with feelings of humiliation. "I think a lot of people will comment, 'you shared a saucy picture out on the internet, what do you anticipate?'," she noted. "I demand dignity, I expect respect, and I expect trust, and I fail to understand why those are up for debate," she added. "The fact that those images could be subsequently distributed where I live or with my loved ones and employed to cause them pain, that's unacceptable, that's not my choice, that's not my mistake, that's an individual being an abuser." Madelaine hopes her technology will prevent would-be individuals from sharing photos non-consensually. A Unique Journey Madelaine has been working as a dominatrix, primarily online, for a decade and consistently found her work liberating and satisfying. "I am as a woman in control, a woman who is empowered and strong, offering my body as a treat to someone of my own volition," she described. "Some believe it's unusual but I don't see it any differently to a personal trainer or an accountant providing a service," she added. She embraces being something of an anomaly in the world of tech. "I know that it's unconventional, it's remarkable to think that someone who was a dominatrix is now a creator of a technology firm, but it required someone who has been through it to know the flaws and the modifications that were necessary," she stated. She maintained she was not technically inclined and was able to build her company after many late nights, investigation and "consulting experts" who know about tech. How Does the Technology Work? Image Angel can be implemented on any online platform where people exchange photos, for instance dating apps, social media and online sites. When an image is viewed by a user, it is automatically embedded with an undetectable digital marker which is unique to them. This covert marker is encoded within the digital file of the image itself and can withstand screen shots, being altered and being re-captured with a secondary device. It ensures that if you find out your image has been shared non-consensually, providing the service you posted it on has the system integrated, the viewer's details will be encoded in the image and can be extracted by a forensic expert so legal steps can follow. Currently, one platform has implemented her tech and she's in talks with several more. An Established Method for a New Purpose "This technology is already in use in the film industry, it already exists in live television so this is not brand new technology, it's just a new application and a different framework," said Madelaine. "We have validated it, we're collaborating with a firm that has decades of expertise in developing technology so we know that this is reliable and what we now need to do is test it at scale," she added. She said she believed the technology would also act as a deterrent to would-be intimate image abusers. Changing the Narrative An advocate from a leading helpline said she had seen first-hand the panic, distress and self-blame intimate image abuse inflicted on victims. "When that guilt is reinforced by a misinformed friend or professional who says 'well, why did you take those images in the first place?' that self blame can really be deepened so it's crucial that the support somebody is provided with is that they have not done anything wrong," she stated. She noted it was fantastic that Madelaine was using her experience to create solutions, saying: "It is really important to have this comprehensive strategy towards tackling tech facilitated abuse, because no one tool is going to be able to tackle this alone, no one helpline, it needs to be this multi-layered response." Both women have been victims of experiencing their private photos distributed without their consent. TV presenter Jess Davies was only fifteen when images of her in her underwear were circulated within her town. It was the beginning of multiple violations Jess endured in her youth that would later shape her advocacy work. "It took so long, an excessive amount of time for someone to tell me, 'it wasn't your fault' and 'that was wrong'," said Jess. She too is dedicated to removing the stigma of intimate image abuse from the survivors to the perpetrators. "It isn't a crime to consensually send an photo to someone," stated Jess. "But it is a crime to circulate that non-consensually and I think that should always be where the blame is," she concluded.