In brief
The release of unredacted images and videos depicting nudity in the Epstein file has ignited outrage among victims and their advocates, who assert that these breaches can cause 'irreparable' damage. Despite assurances of corrective action from the Department of Justice, numerous such images remain accessible online. Victim advocates highlight the failure to properly redact sensitive information, exacerbating the trauma that many victims have endured.
Unredacted images and videos showing nudity released in the Epstein files have been online for days despite US officials being warned about failures in redaction, which lawyers say has caused victims irreparable harm.
The files seen by BBC Verify are among thousands of documents lawyers say they have discovered that contain identifying information about dozens of Epstein's victims.
Victims groups first spoke out about the issue at the weekend when the New York Times reported nearly 40 separate images had been published as part of the Epstein files on Friday.
On Tuesday, a New York judge said the Department of Justice (DoJ) had agreed to quickly fix the issue after victims called for the website to be shut down until names and images could be properly redacted.
The DoJ removed thousands of documents from its website, stating that the files had been uploaded due to technical or human error. The department said it was continuing to examine new requests, as well as checking whether there were any other documents that might need further redaction.
BBC Verify found independently that a number of images of identifiable people were still online on Wednesday, despite the US government stating it was tackling the issue of incomplete redactions the previous day. We have approached the DoJ for comment and supplied the names of unredacted files.
The damage done is irreparable, Brad Edwards, a lawyer representing the victims, said in a statement.
Four of the images identified by BBC Verify showed partially clothed young females with their faces and bodies unredacted.
They were found during a general search of the millions of files released for evidence of Epstein's interactions with public figures.
Photos of other people appear to have been redacted in some documents but left unredacted elsewhere. One document contained two versions of the same picture, one showing the face covered with a black square and another that showed the face in full.
Department of Justice (DoJ) officials were tasked with redacting all sexually explicit photos or any information which could identify victims before the latest tranche of Epstein files was due to be published over the Christmas period.
Ahead of the deadline set by Congress, deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the files would not be published on time, citing the extra work needed to guard victims' identities. We are looking at every single piece of paper that we are going to produce making sure every victim - their name, their identity, their story, to the extent that it needs to be protected - is completely protected, he said at the time.
However, lawyers for Epstein's victims have heavily criticised the DoJ for its failure to adequately protect hundreds of women identified in the files. We are getting constant calls from victims because their names – despite them never coming forward, being completely unknown to the public – have all just been released for public consumption, Brad Edwards stated on Sunday. It's literally thousands of mistakes.\
