🔗 Share this article Transitioning from BDSM Practitioner to Technology Entrepreneur: An Unconventional Fight Against Intimate Image Abuse Madelaine Thomas states her first-hand ordeal of having her private photos shared without consent provides her a unique insight as a tech founder. Professional dominatrix Madelaine Thomas is not at all your average startup entrepreneur. Following repeated occurrences of individuals distributing her private explicit images, she was "sufficiently outraged to take action" and turned to tech solutions for answers. "These were striking images, I'm unapologetic of the pictures, I'm embarrassed of the way that they were weaponized by someone who I don't know," explained Madelaine. Madelaine has received several awards such as the Innovation in Tech Safety award at a prominent industry conference. Little over a year after launching her venture, Image Angel, which uses covert digital tracking to identify abusers, has garnered significant recognition and was recommended as exemplary procedure in an government-commissioned study earlier this year. This represents quite a departure from her previous career in providing consensual sexual encounters, working with clients in the realms of kink and bondage. The Pervasive Problem Intimate image abuse, commonly known as image-based abuse, is a criminal offence with offenders facing up to two years in prison. It is far from an issue exclusively faced by those in the adult entertainment sector. A study suggests that around 1.42% of the UK female population is affected by this form of abuse each year. Madelaine, thirty-seven, said victims endured feelings of humiliation. "In my view a lot of people will comment, 'you put a saucy picture out on the internet, what do you expect?'," she said. "I expect dignity, I expect consideration, and I expect confidence, and I fail to understand why those are negotiable," she added. "The reality that those images could be subsequently distributed in my community or with people I love and used to hurt them, that's beyond, that's not my choice, that's not my mistake, that's someone committing abuse." Madelaine hopes her technology will prevent potential individuals from sharing photos non-consensually. A Unique Journey Madelaine has been practicing as a dominatrix, mainly online, for a decade and consistently found her work liberating and satisfying. "I am as a dominant woman, a woman who is confident and powerful, giving my body as a gift to someone because I wish to," she described. "Some believe it's unusual but I view it similarly to a nutritionist or an financial advisor giving advice," she remarked. She welcomes being something of an anomaly in the technology sector. "I understand that it's unconventional, it's crazy to think that an individual who was a dominatrix is now a creator of a technology firm, but it required someone who has experienced it firsthand to understand the loopholes 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 "bugging people" who understand tech. Understanding the Tech Solution Image Angel can be used by any digital service where people exchange photos, for instance dating apps, social networks 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 invisible watermark is encoded within the copy of the image itself and can survive screen shots, being edited and being re-captured with a different camera. It means that if you find out your image has been circulated without your consent, providing the service you posted it on has the technology embedded, the sharer's information will be hidden within the image and can be extracted by a forensic expert so legal steps can follow. To date, one service has implemented her tech and she's in discussions with many others. An Established Method for a New Purpose "The system is already in use in Hollywood, it already exists in live television so this is not an untested concept, it's just a new application and a new system," said Madelaine. "We have validated it, we're collaborating with a firm that has decades of expertise in tech development so we know that this is reliable and what we now need to do is test it at scale," she added. She expressed hope she hoped the technology would also act as a deterrent to would-be perpetrators. Removing Stigma, Shifting Blame An expert from a support service said she had seen first-hand the panic, distress and self-blame this abuse caused for victims. "When that guilt is compounded by a misinformed friend or professional who says 'what did you expect?' that guilt can really be reinforced so it's crucial that the response somebody is provided with is that they have not done anything wrong," she emphasized. She added it was fantastic that Madelaine was using her experience to bring about change, saying: "It is really important to have this comprehensive strategy towards addressing tech facilitated gender-based abuse, because a single solution is going to be able to solve this problem, not just support services, it needs to be this multi-layered response." Both women have been victims of having their intimate images distributed without their consent. TV presenter Jess Davies was just 15 when images of her in a state of undress were shared around her town. It was the first of several incidents Jess experienced in her teens and 20s that would later shape her women's rights campaigning. "It required years, too long for someone to say to me, 'you are not to blame' and 'that shouldn't have happened'," recalled Jess. She too is dedicated to eliminating the shame of this crime from the survivors to the perpetrators. "There is no offence to willingly share an image to someone," stated Jess. "However, it is illegal to circulate that non-consensually and I think that should invariably be where the blame is," she concluded.