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BDSM practitioner Madelaine Thomas represents far from your average startup entrepreneur. Following multiple instances of clients distributing her intimate photographs, she was "angry enough to do something about it" and turned to technology for answers.

"These were beautiful pictures, I'm not ashamed of the photographs, I'm embarrassed of the manner that they were weaponized by someone who I have never met," stated Madelaine.

Little over a year after founding her company, Image Angel, which uses covert digital tracking to track abusers, has won several awards and was recommended as exemplary procedure in an independent pornography review earlier this year.

This marks a significant shift from her background in providing BDSM services, dominating clients in the realms of BDSM.

A Widespread Issue

Intimate image abuse, commonly known as image-based abuse, is a criminal offence with offenders risking two years in prison.

It is far from an issue exclusively faced by those in the adult entertainment sector. A study indicates that around 1.42% of the UK female population is impacted by this form of abuse on an annual basis.

Madelaine, thirty-seven, said victims endured feelings of humiliation. "I think a lot of people will comment, 'you shared a saucy picture out on the internet, what do you anticipate?'," she noted.

"I expect dignity, I expect respect, and I expect confidence, and I don't see why those are negotiable," she continued. "The fact that those images could be then shared where I live or with people I love and employed to cause them pain, that's unacceptable, that's not my choice, that's not my mistake, that's an individual being an abuser."

A Unique Journey

Madelaine has been working as a professional dominatrix, mainly online, for a decade and consistently found her work empowering and fulfilling. "It's me as a dominant woman, a woman who is confident and powerful, offering my body as a gift to someone of my own volition," she said.

"People think it's unusual but I don't see it any differently to a nutritionist or an financial advisor giving advice," she remarked.

She welcomes being a unique figure in the technology sector. "I understand that it's unconventional, it's crazy to think that someone who was a dominatrix is now a founder of a tech company, but it required someone who has been through it to know the loopholes and the changes that were necessary," she stated.

She insisted she was not in the least bit techy and was managed to build her company after many sleepless nights, research 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 media and websites.

When an image is accessed by a viewer, it is automatically embedded with an invisible forensic watermark which is specific to that viewer.

This covert marker is embedded into the copy of the image itself and can withstand screenshots, being edited and being re-captured with a secondary device.

It ensures that if you find out your image has been shared non-consensually, as long as the platform you used has the system integrated, the viewer's details will be hidden within the image and can be retrieved by a data recovery specialist so legal steps can follow.

Currently, one platform has implemented her tech and she's in talks with several more.

An Established Method for a New Purpose

"This technology already exists in the film industry, it already exists in sports broadcasting so this is not brand new technology, it's just a novel use and a new system," explained Madelaine.

"And we've tested it, we're collaborating with a firm that has 30 years experience in tech development so we are confident that this is reliable and what we now need to do is deploy it widely," she added.

She expressed hope she hoped the technology would also act as a deterrent to would-be perpetrators.

Removing Stigma, Shifting Blame

An advocate from a leading helpline said she had seen directly the panic, distress and self-blame intimate image abuse inflicted on victims.

"If that self-blame is reinforced by a uninformed acquaintance or professional who says 'well, why did you take those images in the first place?' that self blame can really be reinforced so it's crucial that the response a victim receives is that they have not done anything wrong," she stated.

She noted it was inspiring that Madelaine was using her experience to bring about change, saying: "It is really important to have this multi-layered approach towards tackling 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."

TV presenter Jess Davies was just 15 when images of her in a state of undress were shared around her local community. It was the first of several incidents Jess endured in her teens and 20s that would later shape her women's rights campaigning.

"It required years, an excessive amount of time for someone to tell me, 'you are not to blame' and 'that was wrong'," recalled Jess.

She too is dedicated to removing the stigma of intimate image abuse from the victims to the offenders. "It isn't a crime to willingly share an image to someone," said Jess.

"However, it is illegal to distribute that without consent and I think that should always be where the responsibility is," she concluded.