Georgia Harrison warns intimate image abuse is ‘leading children to suicide’ as she demands tougher rules

Georgia Harrison has warned that the non-consensual sharing of intimate images is "leading children to suicide" as she called for tougher measures to prevent abusive material spreading across the internet.

The television personality and campaigner wants platforms to introduce what she describes as a "kill switch", allowing intimate images reported as abusive to be taken offline immediately while their status is investigated.

Harrison, 31, spoke out during an appearance on ITV's Good Morning Britain on Thursday, warning that increasing numbers of young people are seeking help after becoming victims of intimate image abuse.

She said young victims can find themselves facing an ordeal at an age when they are particularly vulnerable.

"I just don't think I could have coped at like 13, 14 or 15, walking into school, having everyone talk about it," she said.

"It's all-encompassing, and that's why it is leading children to suicide."

Harrison calls for online 'kill switch'

New legislation will require regulated technology platforms to remove reported non-consensual intimate images as soon as reasonably practicable and within a maximum of 48 hours.

But Harrison argues that even two days can allow devastating material to spread rapidly across websites, social media and messaging services.

She wants reported intimate image abuse to be removed immediately, placing responsibility on the person who uploaded the material to demonstrate that it was shared consensually.

If consent cannot be demonstrated, Harrison argues that the material should remain offline.

"I just don't think 48 hours is good enough," she said.

Harrison compared the situation to watching a house burn while being forced to wait before anybody intervenes.

Under her proposal, evidence relating to the uploaded material could also be retained and provided to victims if they subsequently wanted to pursue criminal proceedings.

Harrison became victim of intimate image abuse

Harrison has become one of Britain's most prominent campaigners against intimate image abuse after experiencing it herself.

Stephen Bear was convicted in 2022 of voyeurism and disclosing private sexual photographs and films of Harrison with intent to cause distress.

He was subsequently sentenced to 21 months in prison in 2023 and made subject to a five-year restraining order.

Harrison has since campaigned for stronger protection for victims and previously gave evidence to Parliament's Women and Equalities Committee about non-consensual intimate image abuse.

She was awarded an MBE for services to cybercrime awareness and online privacy.

Warning over AI-generated images

Harrison also raised concerns about the growing ability of artificial intelligence tools to generate sexually explicit fake images.

So-called nudification technology can manipulate an ordinary photograph to make it appear that a person is naked or participating in a sexual act.

The Government is separately preparing legislation designed to prevent under-18s from taking, sharing or viewing nude images on smartphones and other devices.

Ministers announced this week that technology companies will be required to introduce stronger device-level protections for children, after concluding that voluntary progress by the industry had not gone far enough.

Harrison argues that preventing abusive material from being created is only part of the solution and that victims also need a much faster mechanism for stopping images once they begin circulating.

Her proposed "kill switch" would effectively reverse the current process: rather than allowing reported intimate images to remain accessible while a complaint is assessed, they would be taken offline first and their legitimacy considered afterwards.

For Harrison, the speed of that intervention is crucial, particularly when children are involved and an image can be copied and distributed across the internet within minutes.