Sex in the digital age is probably unlike anything that anyone (pre-technology) imagined. We are now influenced by sex, because it is so readily available. While there are mountains of free porn around every internet corner, it’s more than that. We’ve become somewhat desensitized to nudity. Nearly nude images are used blatantly throughout social media by celebrities and regular people alike. There are sexy people who post suggestive photos on accounts that their families follow.
To be clear, we are not knocking this at all! The acceptance of nude images and sexual suggestiveness in the digital age is extremely liberating. And, it has trickled through the way we communicate sexually. It’s very common nowadays to send significant others sexy photos. It’s also very common to send fuckbuddies sexy photos. While we appreciate how fun that can be, we also know that it comes with some dangers. Revenge porn (nude submissions of an ex’s photo to a porn host site without the pictured person’s permission) has become somewhat popular, but perhaps not as popular as sharing photos amongst friends, phone hacks and leaks, and sensational stories.
We’ve watched some of our favorite celebrities go through some intense pain and embarrassment because someone took it upon themselves to either share a photo that was sent with the intention of privacy, or hacking, stealing, and sharing nude images. There are some people in the world who simply can’t respect privacy or the wishes of others, and it’s a bummer that it darkens the world of digital sexuality. So, what is the solution? Well, we could suggest that people stop sending nudes altogether, but that doesn’t seem fair.
For some, it’s an intense kink. For others, it’s simply fun, rewarding, and empowering. We don’t think that the rule-breakers should have the power to take that away from people. Nevertheless, there are steps that you can take to protect yourself when you are sending a nude. We can’t guarantee that these steps will keep you 100% safe (the internet can be a damning place), but we will say that it can help you stay safer when engaging in sexts that involve images of your body.
Make sure you trust the recipient
This may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised at how many people send nudes to people that are not trustworthy at all. We know that you’ll probably be sending these nudes to your fuckbuddy and not someone that you are incredibly close with, but use your better judgement and make sure that the person you send photos to is an open communicator and a generally good person. Ways to gage a person’s trust is by evaluating their communication style. If your sexting partner is pushy, relentless, or mean in any way, it’s a pretty good sign that the person is not to be trusted.
Write out a text explaining that these are private photos for your fuckbuddy’s eyes only
The reason that we suggest sending this text is so that if you ever find the photos that you sent to a casual sex partner in a public place online, you can use this text as proof (in writing) that you meant to protect the photos. It is something that is huge if you should ever have to take someone to court for revenge porn. It also makes it easier to get the photos removed from third-party sites. Make sure to save a screenshot of this text and save the image.
Send everyone unique nudes
Should the worst happen and you find that your photos have been shared, you’ll wish that you did not send the same image to multiple people. This is because it will be very tricky to track down the person that actually shared the image.
Use Snapchat to monitor screenshots
Using Snapchat is a very smart way to send nudes because the images that you send (in theory) immediately disappear. If you make it clear to the person that you’re sending nudes to that you don’t want any of your images saved, the person will likely respect that due to the fact that Snapchat notifies people when their sent images are saved or screenshotted. This is not foolproof, as some disrespectful people can find ways around these Snapchat features; however, if you trust the person enough, you should remain in the clear while using Snapchat.
Never show your face & hide your tattoos
Of all the suggestions that we have, this is the most important. If your photos ever get shared and don’t have any recognizable pieces of you in the photo, it will save you so much embarrassment because nobody will be able to truly identify you in the photos. Theoretically, they could be anyone as everyone has body parts that they don’t show the entire world. It maintains your anonymity if the worst were to happen.
We hope that you read through this list and take the necessary steps to protect yourself. While these tips aren’t necessarily sexy, they will be so helpful to you and your peace of mind in the long run!