Porn Victim

Lara, 18, posted a photo of herself online and forgot about it. Until she discovered that it had been stolen and used on the cover of a porn DVD.

I've always been into photography. I used to take still shots on holiday using my dad's digital camcorder, then when I was 13 I found out about other photographers and artists at school and it inspired me to want to try it out for myself. Even then I knew I wanted to be a professional photographer.

When I was 16 I did a diploma in photography, and I've just started at uni studying Visual Communication.

So I was always taking photos and posting them on various websites. There's one called DeviantART.com, which is an online art community. I post my work there all the time. One photo is a self-portrait taken when I was 14. In it I'm wearing a long dress and top hat.

Finding out

“My photo was on a porn DVD called Body Magic.“

Back in January someone who knew my work from various websites emailed me asking if I'd given permission for that photo to be used on a personal blog. I hadn't given anyone any permission, so I went to the website and had a look. The blogger had posted a list of her favourite pictures. I saw it straight away. I felt sick.

Family outrage

It was a picture of a porn DVD called Body Magic. And on the cover was my photo. Some random company had stolen my picture - taken when I was only 14 - and used it on their tacky porn film. My family were outraged. And I was absolutely livid.

Company's response

People get away with stealing photos from websites too often. No way was I going to let them walk over me.

First of all I emailed the film company to let them know I wasn't happy. Their response? They said I'd put the photo on the internet for them to steal, that I was 'scheming', and that my photo was to blame for the DVD's poor sales. I know: unbelievable.

Taking a stand

So I decided to sue.

I found a lawyer in the US (TVX, the company that made the DVD, is American). He has served the papers and we're waiting for a reply from the company's attorneys. I'm not looking for loads of compensation. I just want the company to pay for what they've done. And I want to send a message that you can't steal from websites and get away with it.

Advice to you

Too many artists on the internet who want to showcase their work are violated every day by companies who think it's OK to snatch artwork.

My advice to anyone would be to think before you post your pictures online. Whether it's your profile picture on Facebook or Bebo or some holiday snaps on your blog, anyone can have access to them. Your picture is two clicks away from being stored on someone else's PC. And, as I found out, you have no control over where it might end up.