Intimate images shared without consent: your options
Texas law and a newer federal law both give victims ways to get images removed and hold the poster responsible.
Having private images posted without consent is among the most damaging things that can happen to a person online. The law now gives victims real tools.
Texas law
Sharing intimate images without consent, with intent to harm, is a crime in Texas. Victims can also sue the person who shared them for damages and ask a court to order the sharing to stop.
Federal law
The Take It Down Act, signed in May 2025, makes it a federal crime to knowingly publish intimate images without consent, including realistic AI-generated ones. It also requires covered platforms to remove reported images within 48 hours of a valid request.
First steps
- Save evidence: URLs, screenshots, usernames and any messages from the person
- Do not pay or negotiate if someone is demanding money
- Report through the platform's dedicated form for intimate images
- Use StopNCII.org, which helps block matching images across participating platforms
Search results
Google and Bing both have removal forms for explicit images shared without consent.
Legal action
A lawyer can send preservation and removal demands, seek a court order and, where the person is known, bring a civil claim. Police reports matter too, both for prosecution and as proof for platforms.
This article is general information about the law. It is not legal advice and reading it does not make you a client of the firm. Laws change, so speak to a lawyer about your own situation.