Someone made a fake nude or sexual image of you, or your child, with AI. What to do now.

Also called deepfake nudes, 'nudify' or 'undress' images, nonconsensual intimate images (NCII) or image-based sexual abuse. When someone uses the image to demand money or more pictures, it's sextortion.

Reviewed by Colin Balfe on Oct 27, 2026 · Updated Oct 27, 2026 · Every fact links to its source
If it's happening right now

You did nothing wrong: the person who made or shared it did. If someone is demanding money or more pictures, don't pay and don't reply; block them, but keep the messages. Write down where the image is (links, usernames, dates) without forwarding it to anyone. Then get it taken down: NCMEC's Take It Down for anyone under 18, StopNCII for adults, and a removal request to each platform, which must now act within 48 hours.

AI tools can turn an ordinary, fully clothed photo into a realistic sexual image in seconds. The FBI has warned since 2023 that criminals do this with pictures taken from social media, then post them or use them to harass and extort people, including children. A fake image can still do real harm, and it is treated seriously: the FBI says sexual images of children made with AI are illegal under federal law, and the TAKE IT DOWN Act covers AI deepfakes of adults too.

What to do, step by step

  1. Take a breath. This is not your fault.The person who made or shared the image is responsible, not you and not your child. The FBI's message to victims: you are not alone, and this is not your fault. If it's your child, the first thing they need to hear from you is that they're not in trouble.
  2. If someone is demanding money or more images: don't pay, don't reply.The FBI and NCMEC both say paying or cooperating rarely stops the blackmail. Block the account and report it on the platform, but don't delete your profile or the messages: they help police find the person. Don't give anyone access to your accounts or devices, and be wary of companies that charge victims for 'removal' help; the FBI warns against them.
  3. Save evidence, but don't spread the image.Note or screenshot the web address, the usernames, the platform and the date and time of each post and message. The FBI asks victims to keep usernames, emails, platform names and messages. Don't forward or re-post the image, even to friends or to 'prove' it's fake. If the image appears to show someone under 18, don't copy, save or send the image itself: give the location to NCMEC and police and let them handle it.
  4. Get it removed: under 18.Use NCMEC's free Take It Down service. NCMEC says it can help whether an image is real or AI-made. It creates a digital fingerprint (a hash) on your device, so the picture is never uploaded, and participating platforms use it to find and remove copies. You can stay anonymous. It's for images of you when you were under 18, so adults can use it for those too. Also report the image on the CyberTipline with its exact web address.
  5. Get it removed: 18 or over.Use StopNCII.org, run by the UK's Revenge Porn Helpline. Its FAQ says deepfakes and manipulated images count, as long as you're the person shown and have a copy. Like Take It Down, it sends only a fingerprint to partner platforms, never the image. It works going forward; for images already online, report them to each site as well.
  6. Report it to every platform it's on.Use the report option next to the post, often under the three dots. Under the TAKE IT DOWN Act, social media, messaging and image or video sharing services must offer a way to request removal and take the image, and known identical copies, down within 48 hours of a valid request. If they don't, or you can't find a way to ask, report them to the FTC at TakeItDown.ftc.gov.
  7. Report the person.If the image shows a child: NCMEC's CyberTipline and the FBI (tips.fbi.gov or 1-800-CALL-FBI). For sextortion of anyone: the FBI, your local FBI field office or ic3.gov, and your local police. Many states also have their own laws against sexual deepfakes; police or a lawyer can tell you which apply where you live.
  8. Get support, for you or your child.Adults can call the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative's free 24/7 Image Abuse Helpline at 844-878-2274. Families of children can call NCMEC's 24-hour line, 1-800-843-5678, which can also help find someone to talk to. If anyone is having thoughts of self-harm, call or text 988 at any hour.

Which service is for you

Under 18, or the image shows you when you were under 18
NCMEC's Take It Down (removal, anonymous) and CyberTipline (report). Call 1-800-843-5678 for help.
18 or over, and you have a copy of the image
StopNCII.org, which covers deepfakes of adults, plus a removal request to each platform.
Any age, the image is on a site or app
The platform's own report button. Under the TAKE IT DOWN Act it has 48 hours. If it ignores you: TakeItDown.ftc.gov.
Someone is threatening or blackmailing you
The FBI (tips.fbi.gov, 1-800-CALL-FBI or ic3.gov) and local police. Under 18: the CyberTipline too.
A platform won't act, or has no way to ask
The FTC at TakeItDown.ftc.gov. You can file for yourself, your child, or someone else with their permission.

Protect your family before it happens

  • Make social accounts private. The FBI suggests private profiles and friends lists, and caution about posting photos of children publicly. It reduces the photos a stranger can grab, though it can't stop someone who already knows you. FBI warning →
  • Talk to your kids before it happens. Tell them fake images exist, that it's never their fault, that paying a blackmailer doesn't work, and that they can come to you without being punished. NCMEC says teenage boys have been the most common targets of financial sextortion lately. NCMEC on sextortion →
  • Agree what your child should do if it ever happens. Stop replying, don't pay, screenshot the account name, and tell you or another trusted adult. The FBI says sextortion can happen in as little as five minutes, so a plan made in advance matters.
  • Search for yourself now and then. The FBI suggests using reverse image search to check whether your photos are circulating where they shouldn't be.

What to say to your child, before anything happens

Say it once, calmly, long before it's needed. Kids who know they won't be in trouble come to you sooner.

If anyone ever sends you a picture that looks like you, or says they'll share one unless you pay or send more: stop replying, don't pay, screenshot their username, and come to me. You won't be in trouble. It wouldn't be your fault, and we'll fix it together.

How big this is

400,000+reports to NCMEC's CyberTipline in 2025 involving generative AI, up from 67,000 in 2024 and 4,700 in 2023.NCMEC
About 3 millionsexualized, photorealistic images estimated to have been posted by X's Grok in 11 days around New Year 2026, about 23,000 of them appearing to show children. An estimate from a 20,000-post sample.CCDH, Jan 22, 2026
48 hoursis how long covered platforms have to remove a reported intimate image, and known identical copies, after a valid request. The rule took effect May 19, 2026.FTC, May 19, 2026

Real cases

From the Warning Shots index of AI incidents, each dated and sourced.

  • · Pennsylvania. Police say a 41-year-old man photographed a teenage girl in a park and used Grok to turn the photo into abuse material; investigators report hundreds of AI-made images on his devices. He was arrested Oct 21 and has a hearing Oct 30. The charges are allegations. (Tech Times UK (citing NBC10 Philadelphia)) The case file →
  • · Cheongju, South Korea. A middle-school student allegedly made sexual deepfakes of several female classmates from ordinary photos and posted them online. Police opened an investigation after the images spread through the school. (The Korea Herald) The case file →
  • · X, worldwide. Users prompted Grok to edit photos of real women and girls into sexualized images, often without consent. On Jan 9, after an outcry, xAI limited the image tools to paying users; several countries blocked Grok and regulators opened investigations. (CCDH) The case file →
  • · Wisconsin. A federal grand jury indicted a man accused of using Stable Diffusion to create thousands of sexual images of children. The Justice Department said AI-made abuse material will be prosecuted like any other. (US DOJ) The case file →
  • · X. Explicit AI fakes of Taylor Swift spread widely before removal; one post was seen tens of millions of times. It showed how fast a fake can travel, even for someone with a large team behind her. (Wikipedia) The case file →

Where to report it

Questions people ask

Is it illegal to make a fake nude of someone with AI?

For images of children, yes: the FBI says sexual images of minors made with generative AI are illegal under federal law, including realistic computer-generated ones. For adults, the federal TAKE IT DOWN Act makes publishing nonconsensual intimate images a crime and covers AI deepfakes, and many states have their own laws. Which charges apply depends on what was made, shared and where.

What is the TAKE IT DOWN Act?

A federal law signed on May 19, 2025. Since May 19, 2026, social media, messaging and image or video sharing platforms must give people a way to ask for nonconsensual intimate images to be removed, and must take them down, with known identical copies, within 48 hours of a valid request. It covers real images, edited ones and AI deepfakes. The FTC enforces it.

The platform hasn't removed it after 48 hours. What now?

Report the platform to the FTC at TakeItDown.ftc.gov. You can also report it if you can't find a removal process or it doesn't work. You can file if you or your child are in the image, or for someone else with their permission.

Do I have to send the image to get it removed?

No. Take It Down and StopNCII both create a digital fingerprint on your own device and share only that, never the image. Take It Down lets you stay anonymous. For an image of a child, don't send or save copies yourself: give the web address to the CyberTipline or police.

Someone says they'll post a fake of me unless I pay. Should I pay?

No. The FBI says cooperating rarely stops the blackmail, but law enforcement can. Stop replying, block them, keep the messages and usernames, report the account to the platform and contact the FBI or local police. If you're under 18, tell a trusted adult and report to NCMEC too.

My teenager made one of a classmate. What should I do?

Take it seriously and act fast. Make sure they delete it from every device and account and don't share it further, and talk to the school. A sexual image of a minor is illegal even if it's AI-made, so get legal advice. The classmate's family can use Take It Down and the CyberTipline to get it removed.

Will it ever be fully gone?

Often most copies can be taken down, but there's no guarantee. Take It Down and StopNCII only work on participating, public or unencrypted platforms, and edited or cropped versions may need to be submitted separately. NCMEC also explains how to ask Google and Bing to drop cached copies from search results.

Where can I talk to someone?

Adults: the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative's free 24/7 Image Abuse Helpline, 844-878-2274. Children and families: NCMEC, 1-800-843-5678. If you or your child are thinking about self-harm, call or text 988, any time.

Related

Sources

Spot an error or out-of-date advice? Tell us; corrections are made and logged. Written with AI assistance from public sources; every fact checked and approved by Colin Balfe. This page is general guidance, not legal or financial advice. In an emergency, call 911.