OBSCENE porn rules on torture, bondage and sadomasochism are being relaxed in England and Wales.
The kinks were previously branded forbidden by prosecutors with anyone distributing the content facing charges under the Obscene Publications Act.
But the CPS has now performed a U-turn and will instead use a series of tests to determine how obscene a video or image is.
Some of the acts were previously legal to perform with a consenting adult but were illegal to depict in photos or videos.
And those who shared images or video via private message could have fallen foul of the law and potentially end up jailed.
The CPS were forced to outline specific examples of illegal acts because it was hard to know what fell under the definition of "obscene".
The porn laws that have been relaxed
- Sadomasochism
- Torture with instruments
- Bondage
- Activities involving "perversion", such as urinating or defecating on to the body
The list included illegal acts - such as having sex with an animal (bestiality) - but also featured other acts like sadomasochism, bondage and torture that some argued were not harmful.
It also included certain activities involving "perversion" - such as urinating on someone.
What the new test will examine
Instead of the previous list of forbidden acts, owning or producing pornographic material is unlikely to be prosecuted if:
- It features consenting adults, where the provision of consent is made clear where consent may not be easily determined from the material itself
- No serious harm is caused, whether physical or otherwise
- It is not otherwise linked with other criminality
- The likely audience is not under 18
The CPS has now removed all the specific examples from its guidance, saying: "It is not for the CPS to decide what is considered good taste or objectionable."
They have instead issued a series of guidelines advising how to avoid prosecution for owning or creating pornographic material.
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Prosecutors will instead test whether the porn features consenting adults and if no serious harm has been caused.
The test will also look at whether material is not otherwise linked with other criminality and if the audience is under 18.
The CPS said it would "continue to robustly apply the law to anything which crosses the line into criminal conduct and serious harm".
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