Summary
- Signed 19 May 2025 (Public Law 119-12). It amends Section 223 of the Communications Act.
- Crime: knowingly publishing an intimate image of an identifiable person without consent, including a digital forgery (an image made or altered with software, machine learning or AI that a reasonable person could not tell from a real one). Threatening to publish is also a crime. Consent to create an image is not consent to publish it.
- Platforms: by 19 May 2026, covered platforms must offer a clear process for victims to request removal, and after a valid request must remove the image and make reasonable efforts to remove known identical copies within 48 hours.
- Platforms that remove material in good faith are protected from claims over that removal.
- The law covers authentic images too, so it is not only about AI; it is listed here because AI deepfakes are a core target.
Who it applies to
- Individuals who publish or threaten to publish such images (criminal).
- Covered platforms: public websites, online services and apps that mainly host user-generated content, or that regularly publish non-consensual intimate images as part of their business. Excluded: broadband providers, email, and sites mostly made of provider-chosen content where chat or comments are incidental.
- Extraterritorial: the statute does not limit "covered platform" to US companies. Any platform serving the US public appears to be in scope, and the FTC's 2026 warning letters reportedly went to overseas "nudify" sites as well as US firms (secondary). Treat foreign platforms with US users as covered.
Key dates
- S. 146 passed by the Senate
- Passed by the House
- Signed into law (Public Law 119-12); criminal provisions apply
- Deadline for covered platforms to run a notice-and-removal process (1 year after enactment)
Full date record
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 2025-02-13 | Passed Senate |
| 2025-04-28 | Passed House |
| 2025-05-19 | Signed; criminal provisions apply |
| 2026-05-19 | Platform notice-and-removal duty enforceable |
Penalties and enforcement
- Criminal (DOJ): fines and up to 2 years' prison for adult cases, 3 years where the victim is a minor; threats up to 18 months (adults) or 30 months (minors).
- Platforms (FTC): failing to reasonably comply is treated as breaking an FTC rule on unfair or deceptive practices. The FTC may enforce against non-profits too.
- Secondary sources report civil penalties of up to USD 53,088 per violation, an FTC reporting portal, and warning letters sent around the May 2026 deadline (not confirmed on ftc.gov in this review).
What it means for an Indian company
- Indian social, dating, gaming, creator or community apps with US users are likely covered platforms. Before 19 May 2026 they needed:
- A visible removal-request form and process (SC-AI-035 Takedown and response timelines).
- A 48-hour removal workflow with hash matching to catch identical copies (SC-AI-034 Unlawful and prohibited content safeguards).
- Logs proving request receipt time and removal time (SC-AI-032 Logging and record keeping).
- Generative AI image tools: add safeguards against creating intimate deepfakes of real people (SC-AI-036 Deepfake and impersonation safeguards) and label synthetic content (SC-AI-023 Label AI-generated and synthetic content).
- India's own IT Rules also set short takedown windows for such content; one global workflow can serve both. See IT Rules Amendment 2026 (Synthetic Content) and MeitY AI and Deepfake Advisories.
Obligations
Full obligation breakdown coming
We break the most requested policies down into numbered obligations mapped to controls. Leave your details and we’ll tell you when TAKE IT DOWN Act is done.
Glossary
- NCII: non-consensual intimate imagery.
- Digital forgery: an intimate image of a real person created or altered by software or AI that looks real.
- Covered platform: a public site or app that mainly hosts user content (as defined in the Act).
- Valid removal request: a signed request from the person shown (or their representative) identifying the image and stating it was published without consent.
- FTC: Federal Trade Commission, the US consumer protection agency.
Key takeaways
- Federal crime to publish real or AI-generated intimate images without consent.
- Covered platforms must remove reported images and identical copies within 48 hours; duty live since 19 May 2026.
- FTC enforces platform duties; foreign platforms serving US users should assume they are covered.
Official sources
- Public Law 119-12 text (govinfo), accessed 2026-10-19
- S. 146 on congress.gov (page returned 403 to automated fetch; public law text used instead), accessed 2026-10-19
- FTC: Enforcing compliance with the TAKE IT DOWN Act (found via search, not fully read), accessed 2026-10-19
This is general information, not legal advice. Last verified 19 Oct 2026 against the official source. Laws change; confirm the current position with qualified counsel before acting.