She'd had a hard life and in her early 20s used sex as a way to find validation.

Relationships with boyfriends involved Skype chats and texts that included intimate images — something everyone she knows does, Shainee Chalk told CBC News.

"I trusted the wrong people. I trusted a lot of the wrong people," Chalk said.

Chalk is one of about 40 women whose pictures were posted on Discord, an app that bills itself as a place for gamers to chat.

One woman last week discovered her own photos and others she recognized, and started contacting women in Woodstock.

Reports say the gaming app removed the images when contacted by one of the women. Discord has not returned requests for comment.

Woodstock police have been called and an investigation has been launched.

"We became aware of this over the weekend. Unfortunately, these things happen more than the public is aware of. It's disconcerting that people would share those images without the consent of the person who is depicted in them," said Woodstock Sgt. Don MacKenzie.

Sharing intimate images without a person's consent is a criminal offence and could result in a jail term of up to five years.

'I have so little trust now'

Chalk said her ordeal started years ago, when she discovered her intimate images on Tumblr. Since then, she's found them traded on other websites and social media apps, some of which have since been shut down.

Many now exist on another site where other Woodstock women's pictures are. Men trade the pictures, offering to post the picture of one woman in exchange for a post of another.

"The things they say about the pictures are pretty nasty," Chalk said.

Some of the women's images are years old and a few of the women are now in new relationships and have children.

"Everyone wants to be anonymous but for me, I've dealt with this for seven years. I've dealt with the consequences of everyone knowing. I'm ready for someone to stand up and put their face to this."

'Don't blame yourself'

Chalk said she's had counselling to deal with the feelings of self-blame and depression, but has turned a corner.

"I blamed myself but it's not my fault. It's the fault of those men I chose to trust. No one should be ashamed but them," she said.

Police advise against sharing intimate photos with anyone, because once they're sent — or once a screen shot is taken — the person loses control over them.

But MacKenzie also warned people who share images of someone without their consent.

"My advise to anyone who is thinking of sharing an image of someone who has shared an image with them is that it's a criminal offence, and we take it quite serious."

Chalk, however, said she's disappointed with the police response. She reported her own images being shared to Woodstock police two years ago, she said, and didn't hear anything.