Advocacy group

Consent forms which allow the police to search through a victim’s electronic devices including messages, photos, emails and social media apps has been rolled out to 43 forces in England and Wales. The forms have been put in place after disclosure issues resulted in a spike of cases being dropped. But advocacy groups have said that asking sexual assault victims to hand over such sensitive information indiscriminately could deter people from coming forward, calling the measure a “digital strip-search” which treats the victims like suspects.

Pressure group urges ministers to tighten up laws.