The ''Rack Appreciation Society'' Facebook group gained national headlines after it attracted more than 2000 members before being shut down this week.
Police yesterday promised to ''take action'' in cases where photos posted on the page were stolen or taken without the subjects' consent and urged victims in this situation to come forward.
The fact many of those posting explicit images of women on the page without consent were not breaking the law has prompted Rape Crisis to call for the Government to investigate introducing tougher laws.
And the page's creator, Otago University student Sean McDonald, had left town temporarily, in part to avoid a backlash since his name became public, a flatmate told the Otago Daily Times.
The university yesterday came out strongly against the page, saying a male student involved in the site was facing disciplinary action ''after an initial investigation''.
Other members of the site could also be disciplined, Prof Hayne said.
''We are taking these allegations very seriously and where we can identify breaches of the university's ethical behaviour policy, we will take action to set an example to the university and wider community that this sort of behaviour is totally unacceptable on every front.''
Disciplinary action could range from suspension or fines to permanent exclusion from the university.
The university was ''extremely disappointed'' the behaviour of a few had ''sullied the reputation'' of the university ''and cast aspersions on the remainder of our student body''.
This incident highlighted a ''serious social issue'' around the objectification and degradation of women in New Zealand society and via social media in particular.
A member of the now defunct page, Matt Miller, told the ODT in a Facebook message that people involved in the page did not deserve to be punished.
''I don't expect to be punished. It was a mistake and I personally have had a good think about what I had done ... and don't plan on contributing in something like this again,'' Mr Miller, who is from Dunedin but not a student, said.
He accepted he had crossed a line, but said many ''young women act almost just as bad'' in the way they interacted with each other.
''But we were stupid enough to do this via Facebook in open public.''
Relieving area commander Dunedin-Clutha-Waitaki Inspector Mel Aitken yesterday encouraged victims to come forward and contact Sergeant Janelle Tait, of Dunedin police, on 425-9356.
''If any woman thinks that either their image has been stolen and placed on the site, or that an image has been taken without their consent, i.e. photographed without their consent, we encourage them to make contact with police,'' she said in a statement.
While sharing an image without consent was not necessarily unlawful, the content of the photograph and circumstances in which it was taken could determine its legality and each case would be assessed to ascertain whether an offence had occurred, Insp Aitken said.
''These kinds of sites are not necessarily unlawful, but we do appreciate that they can cause significant upset and social harm,'' Insp Aitken said.
Rape Crisis Dunedin educator and funding co-ordinator Anna-Kristy Munro said the Government needed to look at making it criminal to post explicit pictures without consent.
If it was not made criminal the kind of behaviour seen on the ''Rack'' page would ''keep happening''.
She was also disappointed that Rape Crisis had received hate mail over her comments in yesterday's ODT, she said.
Otago University media law specialist Associate Prof Selene Mize said while most of the behaviour on the page was not criminal, victims could sue those who posted explicit pictures for damages in a civil court.
She was wary about making such behaviour criminal, but encouraged victims to sue.
''I think the fact that you can sue for something is a valid remedy and I would encourage women to do that,'' Prof Mize said.
It was a different story if the images were stolen or taken without the person's knowledge, in which case it would involve a criminal act.
If passed, the Harmful Digital Communications Bill, now in the select committee stage, would make it criminal if images were posted with the intention of harming the person depicted in them.
