UCD Investigation Finds No Evidence Of ‘Revenge Porn’ Facebook Page

After launching an inquiry into the 'revenge porn' Facebook page, the college has stated that the claims are unsubstantiated. The Irish Times reports that the images allegedly posted in the Facebook group surfaced via a Yik Yak group. Professor Mark Rogers, the University's Deputy President and Registrar, said that there is "no first-hand evidence for the allegations and that the report was entirely based on anonymous hearsay on Yik Yak". An email, published in full on JOE.ie, was issued to all UCD students explaining the findings of the investigation. It says that no students looked for support and the students he spoke to about the incident had no first-hand knowledge of the group. However, Professor Rogers said that he was "not so naïve as to believe that the university community is immune to this type of activity". He also urged any students affected by the sharing of personal information through social media to come forward and avail of the university's support services. Earlier this week, we launched a survey aimed at finding out the extent of online abuse in Ireland and what we can do to change this. One of the questions within the survey was "have you ever been a victim of online abuse?". The reply below is one that draws attention to the bigger problem at play here and one which will continue to rage long after #UCD200 unless we initiate a change. "The scary thing is, I don't know. Like many normal Irish women, I have shared intimate photographs with boyfriends. I never thought too much about what a person would do with the photos when the relationship ended. I have always deleted those type of pictures and I would also have liked to think that the ex-boyfriend would likewise delete my photos out of pure trust and respect. I never in a million years thought this might happen to me. It terrifies me to think that my pictures may have been shared without my knowledge. As someone who has had a relationship with a person who happens to be a 4th-year ag student in UCD, this is particularly frightening".