In case you live under a rock and have not heard the shit storm surrounding Rob Kardashian and Blac Chyna, here's a very long saga condensed to a short story; supposedly Rob cheated on Blac Chyna, causing her to plot and act on some revenge, eventually leading to Kardashian posting Chyna's Nudes on Instagram. I usually don't write on celebrity gossip, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE DO NOT KNOW THE EXACT DETAILS AND WE ARE IN NO PLACE TO JUDGE, but this whole cluster fuck that is on display for the world should give us a pause to think about this question: how safe are our nudes?
I'm sure we have all heard horror stories from the news, celebrity gossip sites, or someone we know about a girl who got her naked photos sent around. Take for instance, "expose" pages on Instagram. Yeah, that's right. Literally almost every day, there is a new internet troll who dedicates a social media page to "exposing" girls by posting their nudes. But of course, they forget to include the screenshot of the pathetic guy begging for the nudes in the first place. Let me just say this before I write anything further, it does not matter if the girl cheated or did her partner dirty in ANY way, celebrity or not, naked photos should never be used as a social weapon. Also, showing friends without permission or screenshotting without permission is just as bad. And if you know anyone who does this or see an "expose" page, call them tf out and report it. Now that we have that taken care of, let's talk about how to safely send nudes.
1. Before you even consider Sending a naked photo, if you are underage plz take in the fact that you are putting yourself and the person you are sending them to at risk. I'm not even gonna say don't do it because I have done it and most of my friends have too, but I'm just saying know the risks and consequences. ANY involvement, whether it is sending or receiving can be prosecuted and you could face up to 5 years in jail for child porn. It does not matter if both parties are consenting, as long as at least one of the parties is under 18, it is a crime.
2. Do you trust this person you are sending it to? How long have you been with/known them? Is there a chance if things go south, they will be vengeful? If there is any hesitation at all, do not send it. I have known way too many girls who've sent nudes to someone they thought was trustworthy, and it ended horribly.
3. Crop out your face and any marks, such as tattoos, piercings, birth marks, ANYTHING THAT CAN BE IDENTIFIABLE AS YOU. This rule should speak for itself. Let's say the person you sent them to is way shadier than you expected and shows people your nudes, at least you can deny it is you.
4. Don't let the fact that Snapchat alerts you when someone has screenshotted your photo make you too comfortable. There is so many ways around that such as taking a photo of it from another phone. DO NOT RELY ON SNAPCHAT. OR ANY APP AT ALL. But if you do decide to use Snapchat, use the option where you can control how long the person sees it, and do it for like 2 seconds, then it is harder to screenshot.
5. Know your legal rights. Some states, such as California, have passed laws against "revenge porn". It is a misdemeanor and the max jail time is 6 months and a $1,000 fine for a 1st offense. If you are a victim of harassment regarding nude photos, you should contact your police station, file a report, and seek a restraining order.
6. This is prob common sense, but don't post your nudes on a shared server such as google docs or iCloud.
Now if you've already sent nudes and you're starting to panic, stop. Take a deep breathe and realize over 50% of women and men have sent nudes. It is not the end of the world. Hopefully the person who received your photo was as trustworthy as you believed. And if not, the only thing you are guilty of is trusting the wrong person. Even the older adults who tell you not do it and 'if you didn't want people to see it, you shouldn't have sent it" bullshit, have probably sent/received naked photos. Plus the whole attitude of "you deserve it" when it comes to leaked nudes (or anything), is so misogynistic and is blatant slut shaming. Sending nudes does not make you a bad person, and having someone leak them, makes you a victim of a crime, NOT THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM.
