What is the TAKE IT DOWN Act?
The formal name is the Tools to Address Known Exploitation by Immobilizing Technological Deepfakes on Websites and Networks Act. It did two things. Section 2 added a new subsection (h) to 47 U.S.C. § 223, creating federal crimes for publishing nonconsensual intimate images, both real and computer-generated. Section 3 created a notice-and-removal system that every covered platform had to build within one year of enactment, enforced by the Federal Trade Commission. The full text is short and readable on Congress.gov.
The law reaches AI output through the term "digital forgery." The statute defines it as an intimate visual depiction of an identifiable person created with software, machine learning, artificial intelligence or other technological means, including by altering a real image, that a reasonable person viewing it as a whole could not tell apart from an authentic depiction. A person is "identifiable" if their face, likeness or another distinguishing feature, such as a birthmark, appears in connection with the image.
What the law makes a crime
For adult victims, it is a crime to knowingly use an interactive computer service to publish an intimate image of an identifiable person when the image was made or obtained in circumstances where the person had a reasonable expectation of privacy, the content was not voluntarily exposed in a public or commercial setting, it is not a matter of public concern, and publication was intended to cause harm or did cause harm, including psychological, financial or reputational harm. The parallel offense for digital forgeries uses the same structure. For minor victims, the offense turns on intent to abuse, humiliate, harass or degrade the minor, or to arouse or gratify sexual desire.
The statute closes two common defenses in its text: consent to the creation of an image is not consent to its publication, and sharing an image with one person is not consent for someone else to publish it. Threats are covered too. Threatening to publish an authentic image to intimidate, coerce or extort carries the same penalties as publication; threats involving digital forgeries carry up to 18 months (adult) or 30 months (minor).
Exceptions cover lawful law enforcement and intelligence activity, good-faith disclosures to police, in legal proceedings, for medical or scientific purposes, or in reporting unlawful content, disclosures meant to help the person depicted, and a person publishing images of themselves.
What platforms must do
A "covered platform" is a public website, online service or app that primarily hosts user-generated content, or that regularly publishes or hosts nonconsensual intimate images as part of its business. Broadband providers and email are excluded, as are sites built mainly on provider-selected content where comments are incidental. Covered platforms must run a removal process, post a plain-language notice explaining it, and act on a valid request within 48 hours. A platform that removes material in good faith is shielded from liability for that removal, even if the image later proves lawful.
TAKE IT DOWN Act penalties
Criminal penalties
Under the new 47 U.S.C. § 223(h)(4), publishing an intimate image or digital forgery of an adult carries a fine, up to 2 years in prison, or both. Offenses involving minors carry up to 3 years. Threat offenses involving digital forgeries carry up to 18 months for adult victims and 30 months for minors. On conviction, the court must order forfeiture of the distributed material, any proceeds, and property used to commit the offense, and must order restitution. The penalty provisions are in section 2 of Public Law 119-12.
Prosecutions are under way. In a June 2026 client alert, Orrick reported that the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York announced two arrests for violations of the Act. No conviction under the statute has been reported in the sources reviewed for this page.
FTC enforcement against platforms
Section 3(b) treats a platform's failure to reasonably comply with the notice-and-removal duty as a violation of an FTC trade regulation rule on unfair or deceptive practices. That treatment exposes a noncompliant platform to civil penalties; Orrick puts the current figure at $53,088 per violation. The statute also extends FTC jurisdiction to nonprofit platforms, which the FTC Act normally does not reach. There is no private right of action against platforms under section 3; victims report noncompliance to the FTC.
Is the TAKE IT DOWN Act in effect? Effective dates
Yes. The criminal provisions took effect when President Trump signed the bill on May 19, 2025; the Congress.gov action history records both the signature and the public law number that day. Section 3 gave platforms one year to build their removal process, so the platform duty became enforceable on May 19, 2026.
The FTC opened enforcement that day. Its press release announced a complaint site, TakeItDown.ftc.gov, for people whose valid requests were ignored or who found no removal process at all, and published guidance for consumers and for businesses. The week before, FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson sent reminder letters to Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Automattic, Bumble, Discord, Match Group, Meta, Microsoft, Pinterest, Reddit, SmugMug, Snapchat, TikTok and X.
According to Orrick, the FTC sent warning letters on May 20, 2026 to about a dozen unnamed companies over apparent noncompliance, without a formal finding. As of November 9, 2026, no FTC complaint or civil penalty against a platform under the Act has been reported in the sources reviewed here. Open questions include what "reasonable efforts" to find identical copies requires and how far "covered platform" extends.
How to report under the TAKE IT DOWN Act
The statute sets out what a valid removal request contains. Section 3(a)(1)(B) of the law requires the request to be in writing and to include four things:
- a physical or electronic signature of the person depicted, or of someone authorized to act for them (a parent or guardian for a minor, for example);
- enough information for the platform to identify and locate the image, such as a link or post ID;
- a brief statement of good-faith belief that the image was published without consent, with any information that helps the platform confirm that; and
- contact information so the platform can reach the requester.
Each covered platform must say, clearly and conspicuously, where to send the request. Once a valid request arrives, the 48-hour clock starts. The platform must take down the reported image and make reasonable efforts to find and remove known identical copies.
If a platform does not act, or has no process, the FTC accepts complaints at TakeItDown.ftc.gov, as described in the agency's May 19, 2026 announcement. Publishing or threatening to publish the image may also be a federal crime, which is a matter for law enforcement rather than the FTC. Keep copies of the request, timestamps and any replies; they document both the platform's response and the underlying conduct. For other legal routes, including civil claims, see the related pages listed below and the rights hub.
When was the TAKE IT DOWN Act passed, and who voted against it?
Sen. Ted Cruz introduced S. 146 on January 16, 2025, with Sen. Amy Klobuchar and 19 other original cosponsors from both parties. The Senate passed it by unanimous consent on February 13, 2025, without a recorded vote. The House took it up under suspension of the rules on April 28, 2025 and passed it 409 to 2, with 22 members not voting, on Roll Call 104. The President signed it on May 19, 2025.
The two "no" votes were Republican Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Eric Burlison of Missouri, as the House Clerk's record shows. Massie explained his vote on X, calling the bill a slippery slope that was ripe for abuse, as NBC News reported. No senator objected to the unanimous consent request. A House version, H.R. 633, sponsored by Rep. María Elvira Salazar, had been reported by the Energy and Commerce Committee, but the House passed the Senate bill instead.
TAKE IT DOWN Act criticism
The criticism has focused on the removal system rather than the criminal provisions. Digital rights groups argued during passage that the bill could threaten free speech and privacy rights, according to NBC News. The structural concern is visible in the text: platforms must act within 48 hours, they are immune from liability for good-faith removals even when the material turns out to be lawful, and section 3 contains no penalty for a false or bad-faith removal request. Critics argue that combination rewards over-removal.
A second concern is scope. The definition of covered platform turns on whether a service "primarily" hosts user-generated content, and the duty to remove "known identical copies" does not say how far a platform must search. Practitioners such as Orrick have flagged both terms as unsettled. Until the FTC brings a case or a court reads the statute, the practical meaning comes from FTC business guidance rather than precedent.
Supporters point to the lopsided votes and to the gap the law fills: before it, federal law (15 U.S.C. § 6851) gave victims a civil claim for some intimate image disclosures but imposed no takedown duty on platforms. The pending DEFIANCE Act, S. 1837, would extend that civil claim to deepfakes specifically and raise the damages available.
The TAKE IT DOWN Act is in force. Knowingly publishing a nonconsensual intimate image, including an AI forgery, is a federal crime carrying up to 2 years, or 3 years if the victim is a minor. Covered platforms must remove a reported image within 48 hours of a valid request, a duty the FTC has enforced since May 19, 2026.
What changed
- 2026-05-20: FTC sends warning letters to about a dozen unnamed companies over apparent noncompliance, per Orrick.
- 2026-05-19: Platform notice-and-removal duty takes effect; FTC begins enforcement and opens TakeItDown.ftc.gov.
- 2025-05-19: Signed by the President; becomes Public Law 119-12. Criminal provisions take effect.
- 2025-04-28: House passes S. 146, 409 to 2 (Roll Call 104).
- 2025-02-13: Senate passes S. 146 by unanimous consent.
- 2025-01-16: Sen. Cruz introduces S. 146.
Frequently asked questions
What does the TAKE IT DOWN Act do?
It makes knowingly publishing nonconsensual intimate images a federal crime, including realistic AI-generated or altered images called digital forgeries, and it makes threats to publish them a crime. It also requires covered platforms to run a removal process and take down reported images, plus known identical copies, within 48 hours of a valid request.
Is the TAKE IT DOWN Act in effect?
Yes. The criminal provisions have applied since the law was signed on May 19, 2025. The platform notice-and-removal duty became enforceable on May 19, 2026, and the Federal Trade Commission began enforcing it that day.
What is the punishment under the TAKE IT DOWN Act?
Publishing an intimate image or digital forgery of an adult carries up to 2 years in prison and a fine; offenses involving minors carry up to 3 years. Threats involving digital forgeries carry up to 18 or 30 months. Courts must also order forfeiture and restitution. Platforms that fail to comply face FTC civil penalties.
How do I report an image under the TAKE IT DOWN Act?
Send the platform a written request through its posted process with your signature, information to locate the image, a brief good-faith statement that it was shared without consent, and your contact details. The platform has 48 hours to remove it. If it does not, you can complain to the FTC at TakeItDown.ftc.gov.
Who voted against the TAKE IT DOWN Act?
Only two members of Congress: Republican Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Eric Burlison of Missouri, on the House vote of April 28, 2025, which passed 409 to 2. The Senate passed the bill by unanimous consent, so no senator recorded a vote against it.
Sources
- Congress.gov: S. 146, TAKE IT DOWN Act, all actions
- Public Law 119-12, enrolled text (Congress.gov)
- House Clerk: Roll Call 104, April 28, 2025
- FTC: FTC Begins Enforcing the TAKE IT DOWN Act (May 2026)
- FTC: Complying with the TAKE IT DOWN Act (business guidance)
- Orrick: Take It Down Act Enforcement In Full Swing (June 17, 2026)
- NBC News: House passes bipartisan bill to combat explicit deepfakes (April 28, 2025)
This page is journalism and commentary, not legal advice. AI law changes quickly; check the primary sources above and consult qualified counsel for your situation.