Sydney man charged for 'sexting'

A Sydney man has been charged for "sexting", in what's believed to be one of the first cases of its type in Australia.

The 41-year-old from Cammeray, on Sydney's lower north shore, allegedly sent lewd mobile phone text messages to eight people between March 4 and April 8.

NSW Police said the messages depicted "nudity and lewd acts" - a phenomenon often described as "sexting".

Officers raided his home and seized laptops and documents.

He was arrested and charged with eight counts of using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend.

The man was bailed to appear at Downing Centre Local Court on May 29.

There are understood to have been very few, if any prosecutions for sexting in Australia.

Experts agree that the phenomenon has spread rapidly with the rocketing uptake of smartphones and social media apps in the past three to four years.

Teenagers and younger people are said to be among the most prolific "sexters".