to think that if I shared an explicit picture of myself with a stranger and then they used that to blackmail to release client information, I would be sacked?

[cakeorwine]

I guess people know what we are talking about.

William Wragg: Jeremy Hunt praises MP's apology over dating app incident - BBC News

If you send an explicit picture of yourself to a stranger, you are asking for danger.

If I did that and I was blackmailed into releasing personal information on other people, I would be sacked,

But hey, it's an accident. Nothing to see here.

And as for MPs who then were contacted by a stranger and then sent their own explicit pictures, what is there to say?

Fucking hate Hunt. This situation is precisely why the electorate have no faith in MPs. Always one rule for us and one rule for them. He is a dozy, ugly, oblivious moron who should be losing the whip and hopefully his seat.

I think it shows a compassionate attitude to a colleague who made a stupid mistake and if more employers showed a similar compassionate attitude, it would deprive blackmailers (who are the real villains here) of some of their leverage.

In terms of being told I'm stupid for suggesting that if you send unknowns dickpics you should be comfortable with them being circulated.

This is exactly what we tell children - that they need to be very careful about the information and pictures that they take and send, because they have no idea where they could end up.

Or does @noblegiraffe not suggest to their students that careful consideration is needed in information exchange to strangers.

Ah to have the perfect ability to spot scammers and fraudsters.

Expecting MPs to not engage in sexual activity seems unreasonable.

If he had met a woman in a bar and been covertly filmed in a compromising situation, would you be more sympathetic?

Ah to have the perfect ability to spot scammers and fraudsters.

Surely if you were an MP you’d just assume everyone was? Actually you don’t even need to be an MP to do that.

I'm finding the reaction of Tory MPs really strange. They seem incredibly sympathetic to someone who gave private details of fellow MPs and others to blackmailers. Are they trying to play down the seriousness of the security implications? Are they trying to avoid yet another scandal-induced by-election? Or are there a shedload of Tory politicians who have been compromised in even worse ways and are currently bricking it? I think Wragg is somewhat lucky that the revenge porn aspect of this story is restraining the media's instincts.

This sort of blackmail is one of the ways criminals get bank staff to give then bank account details to steal money from peoples accounts. Those bank staff would be sacked, no alternative treatment. I don't see why Wragg should be treated differently.

So MPs should remain celibate?

What kind of compromising position?
If he was married and was having an affair, then that's a problem'

If he knew that he could be blackmailed for sending explicit picks, the answer is quite simple - don't send explicit pics

This is what school children get taught for ages. You never know what could happen to them

MP has gay sex with a man.
Not a problem - unless said MP is anti - gay rights.
MP has sex - not a problem - unless he is having an affair and is pro-marriage.
MP sends picture of his dick - and then he gets blackmailed because someone has picture of his dick - well it's only a problem if he is worried about the world seeing his dick.

Maybe he should just have asked them to release the picture.

i know right! It's like they just can't help themselves.

they must spend an extraordinary amount of time thinking about sex.

I don’t get all the Tory MPs calling him brave and such like. He’s done nothing honourable and it’s weird to talk well of someone like this. It shows how low politics is.

What kind of compromising position?
If he was married and was having an affair, then that's a problem'

I don't think you need to be married and have an affair to not want intimate pictures of you posted to the world?

So if a single man met a woman, went to have sex with her and photos were taken that people would reasonably not want published, you would think that it's his fault?

Because Russia and China would never extort sensitive information.
What an idiot.

Yep, brave my arse.

They are really scraping the barrel......AGAIN

Jesus @noblegiraffe are you defending this shite?
Ive seen it all now

I hold security clearance for my job and would 100% be sacked for this. We are supposed to notify Professional Standards immediately we know of anything that might be used to blackmail or coerce us and they take lying about that very very seriously. Even to the extent of disclosing associates who have convictions that I know about is required.

Defending what? Gay men exchanging dick pics?

Whether we like it or not, it's a perfectly normal thing to do.

Blackmail is illegal. Giving out the phone numbers of colleagues even if blackmailed is unacceptable. He should have gone to the police/whips/whatever.

I didn’t say that, did I? I usually really respect your posts but you appear to have had a lobotomy on this thread.

@noblegiraffe

"Expecting MPs to not engage in sexual activity seems unreasonable."

Show me where anyone has said anything like that. It's giving confidential information to strangers that's the problem. If his initial actions are harmless and not worthy of comment, as is probably the case, he should have gone to the police rather than becoming complicit in blackmail and potentially risking national security. You're repeatedly defending his sexuality, which no reasonable person is criticising.

Right, but if they are not celibate then they are potentially putting themselves in a position to be blackmailed in this way. Because any time you have sex you are open to be covertly filmed.

There were images he didn't want releasing. (I'm assuming) they weren't illegal, just intimate.

If you do something that could lead to blackmail, then you are incredibly stupid.

I don't think you would be defending an MP who was being blackmailed because he was caught having gay sex when his persona was being very anti gay people - as this is something he could be blackmailed for.

If you give a stranger material that can lead to you being blackmailed, then you are to blame.

Funny, because I've said about a million times on this thread that giving the information was unacceptable but sending dick pics wasn't.

Why are people disagreeing with me, if, as you say, they all agree with this position?

Who said anything about gay men?

Which is why he was incredibly stupid.