A new BBC documentary, Hunting the Spycammers, has shed light on the alarming phenomenon of men secretly filming their wives, girlfriends, and strangers, sharing footage online, and boasting about their recordings.
TV presenter Jess Davies, who grew up in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, and was a victim of image abuse at 15, led the investigation, uncovering the range of cheap spycam technology available, including cameras disguised as everyday objects.
Davies and investigative journalist Liam Connell gained access to a voyeur website, where users exchange tips on secretly filming people and boasting about their recordings. They also confronted the owner of the forum, who claimed to regularly check and remove non-consensual content, but the evidence suggests otherwise.
The documentary highlights the devastating impact of such actions on victims, with Davies saying: 'It really highlights how anyone can be targeted with this harm.'
In the UK, filming someone is not automatically a crime, but secret recording can be considered a crime if it's done to cause harassment or alarm, or if it takes place in an area where the person being filmed can expect privacy.
Domestic abuse charity Refuge is calling for tougher regulation of hidden surveillance devices and better police training to identify and investigate their use.