Chrissy Chambers: I am a victim of revenge porn

The 24-year-old is launching a legal challenge in the UK for damages against her ex-boyfriend – in what could become a landmark revenge-porn case.

She claims her former partner – who is British – filmed her while drunk and then posted the footage online six years ago. Speaking to Channel 4 News, Ms Chambers, said she “collapsed and broke down in tears” when she watched the videos years later.

“It was such an invasion of privacy and such a betrayal,” she said. Ms Chambers said that she immediately attempted to delete the videos but legislation prevented her from taking them down as they were uploaded in the UK.

“I fell into a deep depression. I was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder. I became an alcoholic at the age of 22,” she told Cathy Newman.

‘I’m not going to hide’

But Ms Chambers said she would not be perturbed from living parts of her life on the internet.

“I’ve never done anything consensually with my online life that I would be ashamed of people seeing,” she added.

“I’m not going to hide the good parts of what I am… I’m not going to stop doing that because someone evil is trying to hurt me.”

“I dont think there’s anything that any hateful person could do that could hurt me any more.”

Criminal action

She has since contacted the Metropolitan Police and is waiting to hear if criminal charges will be filed under the revenge porn law, which was introduced in April: “I think it’s going to be very difficult. I think that the police hopefully have an option and they will do all they can.

“I try to remain optimistic, because for a long time, I was in such dark despair and that can just eat you alive.”

The YouTube star says she is taking all legal action and hopes her online presence will encourage other victims to come forward: “I hope that they [the police] will pursue him for other charges like harassment or the malicious distribution acts.”

Ann Olivarius, senior partner at London-based law firm McAllister, which is representing Ms Chambers, added: “We have seen many cases where abusive men (and in some cases women) use every means the internet permits to harm their ex-partners. Chrissy is seeking justice not just for herself, but for the hundreds of thousands of revenge porn victims who are out there.”

Who is Chrissy Chambers?

Chrissy Chambers, 24, is an American YouTube star with more than 85 million video views to her name. She is in a relationship with Bria Kam, with whom she has built a successful career on YouTube. Their channel, BriaAndChrissy, has nearly half a million subscribers.

What is revenge porn?

Revenge porn is the sharing of private, sexual materials, either photos or videos, of another person without their consent and with the purpose of causing embarrassment or distress.

The images are sometimes accompanied by personal information about the subject, including their full name, address and links to their social media profiles.

Is it a criminal offence?

A new criminal offence to tackle revenge porn was introduced in England and Wales in April as part of the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill. The new offence criminalises the sharing of private, sexual photographs or films, where what is shown would not usually be seen in public.

Sexual material not only covers images that show the genitals but also anything that a reasonable person would consider to be sexual, so this could be a picture of someone who is engaged in sexual behaviour or posing in a sexually provocative way.

Under new legislation it is easier to prosecute instances of revenge porn. Those found guilty of it, can be sentenced to up to two years in prison and a fine.