Know how to get an intimate picture taken down

Someone you trust asks for a picture. Or you have already sent one, and a few days later the worry arrives. Either way the question underneath is the same: what happens if it gets out? This page is not about whether you should have. It is about what you can control, what you cannot, and where to go if it ever happens.

Once you send an intimate picture you cannot control it, so decide with that in mind, and know before you send where to get it taken down.

If a picture is already out, or someone is threatening you, skip to the “If it happens” section and read the “Read this first” box. It comes before everything else.

A leak is the leaker’s act

Some people say practical advice about sending pictures should never turn into blaming the sender: sending a picture is a personal choice, and it does not invite anyone to share it. One person says advice to manage your own risk can read like blaming someone for what another person does; another says it is plain precaution, like locking a door, and does not say you must or must not send. The law is on the same side. Sharing, or threatening to share, an intimate picture without consent is a crime in the UK, and in the US the federal TAKE IT DOWN Act prohibits publishing one without consent.

What nobody can promise

Many people say the way to avoid the risk entirely is not to send or keep intimate pictures at all, since no digital method guarantees safety. Some people say to treat any picture you make or share as if it could become public for good. Some people say that disappearing messages and deleting do not fix it, because a picture can be captured by screen recording before it vanishes. One person says the other person’s phone may copy it to online storage on its own. One person says that even in a good relationship, a break-up can lead to someone leaking out of spite, so trust is not a reliable safeguard. One person says that for some people the main harm is the violation of intimacy and trust, not the nudity. People differ on how much a leak costs: some people say it can reach a workplace and cost a job, one person says leaks rarely ruin the lives of people who are not public figures, and one person says the cost depends on your family, your surroundings and your own circumstances.

This page does not tell you whether to send. People disagree about that too: one person says sending is a personal right and the focus should be protecting the sender, and another says the simplest advice is not to. It is your decision.

If you choose to send

These are what people suggest, with the honest limits beside each.

Some people say to leave out your face, tattoos, moles, jewellery and anything in the room that could identify you. The first question below has the dispute about how far that goes.

Some people say to turn off automatic cloud backup for devices that hold intimate pictures, or to encrypt the files before they sync, so that a hacked account does not leak them. One person says to turn off syncing or use airplane mode when you take the picture, move it to a computer, delete it from the phone and only then turn syncing back on. One person says to find every sync service running on your devices and check what has already been uploaded, sometimes years ago. One person says phone hacking can lead to a leak even if the recipient never shares the picture, and that a login password alone is not enough for sensitive files. These are individual people’s suggestions, not security standards.

Some people say a mark naming the recipient helps trace a leak; the argument about that sits below this page.

If someone is pushing you

One person says pressure often looks like constant asking, guilt such as “if you love me”, and questions about clothing that lead up to the request, and that teaching people to recognise these scripts helps them see harassment for what it is. One person says people often react badly to a boundary, treating it as a lack of trust.

If it happens

The “Read this first” box has the numbers. In order:

1. Keep the evidence. Save the messages, the pictures and screenshots of any page, with the web address visible, somewhere secure. The US National Center for Missing & Exploited Children says to block the person but not to delete your profile or messages.
2. Do not pay. The National Center says that cooperating or paying rarely stops blackmail. One person says to report an extortionist, because what they send becomes evidence of their crime, and that the threat often fades if you do not engage financially.
3. Report it to the platform, using its safety feature. In the US, a platform that receives a valid request must remove the picture and known identical copies within 48 hours under the TAKE IT DOWN Act, and the Federal Trade Commission has enforced that since 19 May 2026.
4. Use the removal service that fits your age at the time. StopNCII.org is for pictures taken when you were an adult. Take It Down is for pictures taken when you were under 18. Both keep the picture on your device and send only a fingerprint of it to the platforms that take part. They cannot reach platforms that do not take part.
5. Report it to the police. In the UK call 101. In the US, report to your local police and to the FBI at tips.fbi.gov, and if the picture shows someone under 18, to the National Center’s CyberTipline. People disagree about whether the police can do much; the third question below has both views.
6. Talk to someone. In the UK the Revenge Porn Helpline, for adults, helps with reporting and removal. In the US, VictimConnect can talk with you about any crime and your options.

Who this page is not for

If you are under 18, or the picture was taken when you were, the removal service is Take It Down, and in the UK Childline on 0800 1111 or the Internet Watch Foundation; the Revenge Porn Helpline cannot help anyone under 18. The National Center says the blackmailer is to blame, not you, even if you made a choice you regret.

If you are a parent worried about your child, this page does not cover how to talk with children about it. If someone made a fake picture of you, the TAKE IT DOWN Act covers deepfakes as well, and this page does not go further.

If a picture is already out, none of the “If you choose to send” section is for you. The “If it happens” steps are.