Non-Consensual Intimate Images on Social Media: Know Your Rights

What Are Non-Consensual Intimate Images?

Non-consensual intimate images (NCII) are photos or videos with intimate or sexual content that are shared, published or threatened to be shared without the explicit consent of the person depicted. The term covers original recordings, screenshots from video calls and AI-generated deepfakes alike. An important point: it does not matter whether the original image was taken with consent. An intimate photo shared privately within a relationship cannot be forwarded, shared, or published without new, explicit consent, not even to one other person.

What is outside User Rights' scope of review

Not every case involving intimate imagery falls within User Rights' scope. The following are outside our scope of review:

• Child sexual abuse material: Content depicting minors in a sexual context is handled exclusively by specialist bodies. Please report it to the FSM Hotline (Germany) or the relevant national reporting centre in your country. This content will always fall outside User Rights' scope, even if users think the policy was applied incorrectly.
• Depictions of rape and sexual violence: Sexual Exploitation policies across platforms cover this category, but decisions about depictions of rape or sexual violence fall outside User Rights' scope of review.
• Privacy violations at Meta: If your case primarily concerns a data protection or privacy issue rather than the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, it is outside User Rights' scope. Contact your national data protection authority. A list of EU supervisory authorities is available from the European Data Protection Board (EDPB).
• Direct messages: User Rights does not review the content of direct messages. If intimate images were shared exclusively via DMs without any public-facing post or account activity, the platform moderation of those messages is not reviewable. Report the account itself and any publicly accessible content.

Note: User Rights does not review moderation actions that were taken more than six months ago.

A full overview is available on the scope of review page.

Non-Consensual Intimate Image Policies on Social Media Platforms

All platforms covered by User Rights are subject to the DSA, which requires them to give reasons for moderation decisions and to cooperate with certified dispute settlement bodies. Each platform explicitly prohibits the sharing of non-consensual intimate images in its community standards.

Meta: Instagram and Facebook

Meta has an Adult Sexual Exploitation policy that explicitly prohibits sharing, offering, requesting, or threatening to share intimate images without the consent of the person depicted. This covers original images, recordings from intimate situations, digitally created or AI-generated imagery (deepfakes), and it covers sextortion. Meta will remove content, if three conditions are met: firstly, the imagery is non-commercial and features a private setting, secondly, the person is nude, near-nude, engaged in sexual activity or in a sexually suggestive pose, and thirdly, there is a signal that consent to sharing is absent. Please note: Reporting the content yourself satisfies the condition to signal that consent is absent. Depending on the case, Meta's policies on Bullying and Harassment may additionally apply.

Important: Depictions of rape or sexual violence fall outside User Rights' scope, even where Meta's policy is engaged. General privacy violations at Meta are also outside our scope (see the out-of-scope section above).

TikTok

TikTok addresses non-consensual intimate images under its guidelines on Adult Sexual and Physical Abuse and provides a dedicated reporting pathway for this type of content. The policy covers three categories of content: non-consensual sexual acts, image-based sexual abuse, and sextortion. TikTok defines image-based sexual abuse as content that seems to have been taken with consent, but distributed without it. So the fact that you agreed to the photograph being taken is irrelevant.

Important: TikTok's Youth Safety guidelines, covering content that involves minors, are entirely outside User Rights' scope. Please report such content to the FSM Hotline or your national reporting centre. Further, depictions of rape or sexual violence fall outside User Rights scope across platforms, even where TikTok's policy is engaged.

YouTube

YouTube's Nudity and Sexual Content policy prohibits unwanted sexualisation, expressly naming non-consensually shared imagery, voyeurism, wardrobe accidents and nude photo leaks. Also prohibited is any content depicting someone in a sexualised manner without their consent, with upskirting, groping and predatory exhibitionism given as examples, and non-consensual zooming or prolonged focus on the breasts, buttocks or genital area. The policy applies not only to videos but to descriptions, comments, live streams and audio. A first violation usually produces a warning, three strikes within 90 days can terminate a channel, and YouTube may terminate an account outright after a single case of severe abuse or where a channel is dedicated to the violation. If you have been threatened with the publication of intimate images, YouTube's Harassment and cyberbullying policy may apply rather than the Nudity and Sexual Content policy, as sextortion is covered here.

If your content was posted online without your consent, a Privacy complaint under YouTube's privacy guideline may be a suitable second path to having your content deleted as soon as possible. Please note: Until further notice, the privacy policy is not within the scope of User Rights.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn's Professional Community Policies prohibit sexually explicit content and any non-consensual sharing of intimate images. Such cases typically fall under LinkedIn's policies on harassment and unwanted sexual content. Because LinkedIn is built on verified professional identity, this content reaches the people whose view of you matters most: employers, clients and colleagues. Removal speed matters more here than on any other platform, so report through LinkedIn's reporting flow immediately and screenshot the notice. The Professional Community Policies also state a zero-tolerance stance on content depicting the sexual exploitation of children, which falls entirely outside User Rights' scope of review.

Important: Depictions of rape fall outside User Rights' scope of review across platforms. Therefore, even when LinkedIn's policy is engaged, User Rights is unable to review cases containing this type of content.

X

X's non-consensual nudity policy prohibits intimate media shared without consent, expressly covering hidden camera footage, creepshots and upskirts, images that digitally superimpose someone's face onto another person's nude body, content taken in an intimate setting and not intended for public distribution, and offers of a bounty or financial reward in exchange for intimate images. If you find your own content shared on X without your consent, we urge you to report your own content, as the policy states that for certain content, it needs to be reported by the person depicted. Depending on the case, X's Abuse and Harassment policy may apply as well.

Pinterest

Pinterest's Community Guidelines explicitly prohibit the creation or distribution of non-consensual intimate images, upskirting, down-blousing, hidden-camera footage and threats to share such content. Further, the policy also prohibits instructions, tools, and services for intimate image abuse or sextortion. Pinterest operates a dedicated reporting route for NCII as well. Pinterest's Child Safety policy falls entirely outside User Rights' scope. Please report relevant content to the FSM Hotline or your national reporting centre.

Snapchat

Snap's Community Guidelines on Sexual Content prohibit producing, sharing, or threatening to create or share non-consensual intimate imagery, including sexual or intimate photos and videos taken or shared without permission, depictions of private acts such as bathing or using the bathroom, and behaviour threatening to share or expose someone's intimate images (also known as 'revenge porn'). Adult sexual exploitation is also covered, including sextortion and deceptive practices used to coerce or entice someone into providing nude imagery. Creating or sharing AI-generated sexual content is prohibited, as is offering or promoting nudify services.

What Can You Do if You Are Affected?

There are two situations in which User Rights can help: a platform has not acted on intimate images shared without consent that you reported, or your own legitimate content was wrongly removed or restricted as a violation.

Scenario A: Intimate images of you were shared without consent and the platform has not acted

1. Preserve evidence before reporting: Screenshot the content with the account name, URL, date and time. Document any comments, shares or further distribution, ideally with screenshots as well. Once you file a report, content may be removed or the account made inaccessible. To have your own record is essential for any subsequent steps.
2. Report to the platform: Use the in-built reporting function and select the most specific category available, typically the one covering non-consensual intimate images or sexual exploitation. TikTok provides a dedicated reporting pathway for this content. Keep a record of any reference number or confirmation you receive.
3. Appeal if dismissed: If the platform dismisses your report, use the appeal mechanism via the help centre or the dismissal notification. Keep a record of the response too. Please note: You do not have to wait for a response to file a case with User Rights, it is sufficient that a reasonable waiting period of seven days expired. Please always provide evidence of your internal complaint case when you submit a case with User Rights.
4. Submit to User Rights: If the platform's inaction was inconsistent with its own NCII policy, submit a complaint. User Rights will assess whether the platform applied its own policies correctly. If you report something for a violation of a specific platform policy, User Rights may assess whether the platform decision was consistent with related policies as well.
5. Consider parallel steps: Depending on the severity, you may also wish to contact the police or a lawyer. These steps are not a prerequisite for User Rights proceedings and can be pursued in parallel.

Scenario B: Your legitimate content was wrongly removed or restricted

1. Check the reason: Under Art. 17 DSA platforms must give a specific reason for every moderation action. Identify whether your content was removed under an NCII or sexual exploitation policy and whether that categorisation actually applies.
2. Appeal internally: Use the platform's appeal mechanism and provide context that demonstrates the legitimate nature of your content, such as evidence that the content is your own original material, awareness-raising content, or documentation of a survivor's experience. You do not have to wait for a response by the platform after seven days from the date of your internal complaint. Please always provide evidence of your internal complaint case when you submit a case with User Rights.
3. Submit to User Rights: If the internal appeal was unsuccessful or unanswered, submit your case. User Rights will assess whether the removal was consistent with the platform's own policy. User Rights will only assess the policy cited by the platform in their removal notification.

Did a platform fail to act on non-consensual intimate images you reported – or was your content wrongly removed?