AN EIGHT-YEAR-OLD girl has become one of the youngest revenge porn victims in Britain.

The girl was the youngest victim of 277 revenge porn offences reported to South Yorkshire Police between April 2015 and December 2017.

A girl aged 11, two aged 12, two aged 14 and three aged 15, were also victims of revenge porn over the same period, reported The Sun.

The oldest victim reported to the police force was a 61-year-old man.

Nine suspects were charged with offences and four received cautions but most cases didn’t reach court because of victims not supporting prosecutions.

Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act in the UK showed 114 victims didn’t want any further action taken, while another 64 cases failed to reach course because of evidential difficulties.

It became an offence to share private sexual photographs or films without the subject’s consent in England and Wales in April 2015, with a maximum sentence of two years imprisonment.

Chris Heal, a spokesman for the Revenge Porn Helpline, told the Sun Online: “If the victim is under the age of 18, we understand they may not want their parents/carers to know, and may be embarrassed or nervous about their reaction, but telling an adult they can trust is the best action to take.

“They have been a victim of a serious crime and deserve the right to seek help and move forward.”

British children’s charity NSPCC has called for social media companies to do more to stop revenge porn being shared.

Andy Burrows, NSPCC associate head of child safety online, said: “It is absolutely shocking that a child as young as eight years old has become a victim of a terrible case of child sexual abuse.

“It is vital that young people are properly educated about healthy and meaningful relationships both at home and in school, which are based on trust and respect.

“Children must be made aware of the ways that others may try to coerce or manipulate them into sending naked images of themselves.

“This can have long-lasting consequences, particularly given that once an image has been sent, a child will no longer have control over the image and it could be shared publicly.”

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Revenge porn is an awful abuse of trust which can leave victims feeling humiliated and degraded. Since we changed the law, there have been over 550 prosecutions for this offence which carries a maximum sentence of two years behind bars — proving our tough stance is working.

“By making it a specific offence, we have sent a clear message that this crime will not be tolerated.”