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Professional dominatrix Madelaine Thomas is not at all your average tech founder. Following repeated instances of clients distributing her intimate photographs, she felt "angry enough to do something about it" and turned to tech solutions for answers.

"These were striking images, I'm unapologetic of the pictures, I'm embarrassed of the way that they were used against me by an individual who I don't know," said Madelaine.

Just over a year since founding her company, Image Angel, which uses invisible forensic watermarking to track abusers, has garnered significant recognition and was recommended as exemplary procedure in an government-commissioned study recently.

This marks a significant shift from her previous career in offering BDSM services, dominating clients in the world of kink and bondage.

A Widespread Issue

Intimate image abuse, commonly known as revenge porn, is a punishable crime with perpetrators risking two years in prison.

It is not at all an issue exclusively faced by those in the sex industry. A report suggests that approximately 1.42% of the women in the UK is affected by this form of abuse on an annual basis.

Madelaine, 37, explained victims lived with shame and stigma. "I think a lot of people will comment, 'you put a private image out on the internet, what do you expect?'," she said.

"I expect respect, I expect consideration, and I expect confidence, and I don't see why those are up for debate," she continued. "The fact that those images could be subsequently distributed where I live or with people I love and employed to cause them pain, that's beyond, that's not my choice, that's not my mistake, that's someone being an abuser."

A Unique Journey

Madelaine has been practicing as a dominatrix, mainly online, for 10 years and consistently found her work liberating and satisfying. "I am as a woman in control, a woman who is confident and powerful, offering my body as a treat to someone because I wish to," she said.

"People think it's unusual but I view it similarly to a nutritionist or an accountant providing a service," she added.

She embraces being something of an anomaly in the world of tech. "I understand that it's unconventional, it's remarkable to think that an individual who was a dominatrix is now a founder of a tech company, but it required someone who has experienced it firsthand to understand the loopholes and the modifications that needed to happen," she stated.

She insisted she was not technically inclined and was able to build her company after many late nights, research and "consulting experts" who understand tech.

How Does the Technology Work?

Image Angel can be used by any online platform where people exchange photos, for instance dating apps, social media and online sites.

When an image is viewed by a viewer, it is automatically embedded with an undetectable digital marker which is specific to that viewer.

This invisible watermark is embedded into the copy of the image itself and can survive screen shots, being edited and being re-captured with a secondary device.

It ensures that if you discover your image has been shared non-consensually, as long as the platform you posted it on has the system integrated, the sharer's information will be encoded in the image and can be retrieved by a data recovery specialist so action can be taken.

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

An Established Method for a New Purpose

"This technology is already in use in Hollywood, it is employed in live television so this is not brand new technology, it's just a new application and a different framework," explained Madelaine.

"We have validated it, we're collaborating with a firm that has 30 years experience in developing technology so we are confident that this is reliable and what we now need to do is test it at scale," she continued.

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

Changing the Narrative

An expert from a leading helpline commented she had seen first-hand the panic, distress and self-blame intimate image abuse inflicted on victims.

"If that self-blame is reinforced by a misinformed friend or service who says 'what did you expect?' that self blame can really be deepened so it's really important that the response somebody is provided with is that they have not done anything wrong," she stated.

She added it was inspiring that Madelaine was leveraging her ordeal to bring about change, saying: "It is vital to have this comprehensive strategy towards addressing tech facilitated abuse, because a single solution is going to be able to tackle this alone, no one helpline, 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 town. It was the beginning of multiple violations Jess endured in her youth that would later shape her advocacy work.

"It took so long, too long for someone to tell me, 'it wasn't your fault' and 'that was wrong'," said Jess.

She too is dedicated to eliminating the shame of intimate image abuse from the survivors to the offenders. "There is no offence to consensually send an image to someone," said Jess.

"However, it is illegal to distribute that non-consensually and I think that should invariably be where the responsibility is," she concluded.