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Professional dominatrix Madelaine Thomas is not at all your typical tech founder. After multiple occurrences of individuals distributing her intimate photographs, she was "angry enough to do something about it" and looked to technology for answers.

"These were striking images, I'm unapologetic of the photographs, I'm embarrassed of the way that they were used against me by an individual who I have never met," explained Madelaine.

Little over a year after launching her venture, Image Angel, which uses covert digital tracking to track abusers, has garnered significant recognition and was cited as exemplary procedure in an independent pornography review earlier this year.

This represents a significant shift from her background in providing BDSM services, dominating clients in the realms of kink and bondage.

The Pervasive Problem

The non-consensual sharing of private images, often referred to as image-based abuse, is a criminal offence with offenders risking two years in prison.

It is far from an issue exclusively faced by those in the adult entertainment sector. A report indicates that around 1.42% of the women in the UK is impacted by this form of abuse each year.

Madelaine, 37, explained victims endured feelings of humiliation. "I think a lot of people will say, 'you shared a private image out on the internet, what do you expect?'," she noted.

"I expect dignity, I expect respect, and I expect trust, and I don't see why those are negotiable," she added. "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 unacceptable, that's not my choice, that's not my mistake, that's someone being an abuser."

An Unconventional Path

Madelaine has been practicing as a professional dominatrix, mainly online, for a decade and always found her work empowering and fulfilling. "I am as a woman in control, a woman who is confident and powerful, giving my body as a gift to someone of my own volition," she said.

"People think it's strange but I view it similarly to a personal trainer or an financial advisor providing a service," she added.

She embraces being a unique figure in the world of tech. "I understand that it's bizarre, it's crazy to think that someone who was a dominatrix is now a creator of a technology firm, but it required someone who has been through it to understand the flaws and the modifications that were necessary," she explained.

She insisted she was not technically inclined and was able to build her company after a lot of late nights, investigation and "consulting experts" who know about tech.

How Does the Technology Work?

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

When an image is viewed by a user, it is automatically embedded with an undetectable digital marker which is unique to them.

This invisible watermark is embedded into the copy of the image itself and can withstand screenshots, being edited and being re-captured with a different camera.

It means that if you find out your image has been circulated non-consensually, as long as the service you posted it on has the system integrated, the sharer's information will be encoded in the image and can be extracted by a forensic expert so legal steps can follow.

To date, one service has adopted her tech and she's in talks with several more.

Proven Technology, New Application

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

"And we've tested it, we're partnering with a firm that has 30 years experience in developing technology so we know 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 preventive measure to would-be perpetrators.

Removing Stigma, Shifting Blame

An expert from a support service said she had seen first-hand the panic, distress and self-blame this abuse inflicted on victims.

"If that self-blame is compounded by a misinformed friend or service who says 'what did you expect?' that self blame can really be reinforced so it's really important that the response somebody is provided with is that they have committed no error," she emphasized.

She added it was inspiring that Madelaine was using her experience to create solutions, saying: "It is really important to have this multi-layered approach towards addressing tech facilitated gender-based abuse, because no one tool is going to be able to solve this problem, no one helpline, it needs to be this integrated effort."

TV presenter Jess Davies was only fifteen when images of her in a state of undress were circulated within her town. It was the first of several incidents Jess endured in her teens and 20s that would later shape her women's rights campaigning.

"It took so long, too long for someone to say to me, 'you are not to blame' and 'that shouldn't have happened'," recalled Jess.

She too is passionate about eliminating the shame of intimate image abuse from the survivors to the perpetrators. "There is no offence to willingly share an image to someone," said Jess.

"But it is a crime to distribute that non-consensually and I think that should invariably be where the blame is," she concluded.