Victims of revenge porn must be given anonymity, a policing chief has said, to prevent a third of revenge porn allegations being dropped.

Since 2015, when it was made a crime, victims have chosen not to support charges in 2,813 of 7,806 incidents, with some citing lack of anonymity as a cause.

Others have said they did not support charges because of a lack of police support.

Revenge porn is "the sharing of private, sexual materials, either photos or videos, of another person without their consent and with the purpose of causing embarrassment or distress".

Offenders can face up to two years in prison in England and Wales, while in Scotland it is five years.

A petition to change the law has been launched by the North Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Julia Mulligan.

She has asked for anonymity for victims, the same as in sexual offence cases.

The petition, which has received over 15,000 signatures, states: "We want the Government to close the legal loophole which means there are currently no laws to stop media outlets naming victims, including the coverage of court cases. We believe that victims of revenge porn should have the same rights as victims of other types of sexual assault and have their identity protected by law."